Ronaldo

▪ 2003

      One of the greatest comebacks in association football (soccer) history was achieved by Brazilian forward Ronaldo in the 2002 Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup. Ronaldo, who had been named FIFA's Player of the Year in 1996 when he was only 20, and again in 1997, had played poorly in the 1998 World Cup final (which Brazil lost 3–0 to France) when he was not fully fit following a never properly explained prematch illness. Then he had two knee operations that kept him out of the game for almost two years, and it was feared that his career was over. He was back on the Brazilian team for the 2002 World Cup, however, and scored both goals in the 2–0 final victory over Germany. Ronaldo was awarded the Golden Boot as the tournament's top scorer, with eight goals. In 1998 he had scored four goals in the World Cup finals; in 1994, although he was picked for the World Cup squad, he did not play.

      Ronaldo Luiz Nazario de Lima was born Sept. 22, 1976, in Itaguai, Braz., and grew up in the poor Rio de Janeiro suburb of Bento Ribeiro. He began playing football as a junior for the neighbourhood Social Ramos Club at age 12 and two years later joined São Cristovão in the Carioca League. By 1992 he was playing in the Brazilian championship for Cruzeiro. He was a member of Brazil's under-17 South American championship team in 1991 before joining the national side in 1994. By 2002 he had scored 45 goals in 65 international appearances for his country.

      Ronaldo was transferred in 1994 from Cruzeiro to PSV Eindhoven of The Netherlands, where he scored 55 goals in 56 games and won the 1995 league championship and the 1996 Dutch Cup. During only one season with Barcelona (1996–97), he scored 34 goals, captured the Spanish Super Cup, and scored the only goal in Barcelona's 1–0 defeat of Paris Saint-Germain in the European Cup-Winners Cup. In 1997 Internazionale (Inter Milan) paid a then-record $27 million to move Ronaldo to Italy, despite an unsuccessful petition by Barcelona that claimed the transfer violated FIFA rules. At Inter his infectious gap-toothed smile and knack for scoring goals earned him the nickname “Il Fenomeno” until the career-threatening knee injury in 1999 left him on the sidelines. Shortly after the 2002 World Cup, Ronaldo announced that he was abandoning Inter for Real Madrid, arguably the world's top club. After much wrangling, Real agreed to pay a transfer fee of €47 million (about $46.3 million). A muscle pull Ronaldo suffered in early September initially caused uncertainty about when the talented striker would debut with his new team, but the first appearance came in early October, and Ronaldo scored two goals. In December Ronaldo gained double honours when he was named European Footballer of the Year (an award he also had received in 1997), and, once again, FIFA Player of the Year.

Eric Weil

▪ 1998

      What was perhaps the most noteworthy battle in association football (soccer) in 1997 took place off the field. The Spanish club FC Barcelona wrangled with Internazionale of Italy over the rights to a mild-mannered young Brazilian striker, who—in 1996 at just 20 years of age—had been declared the best player in the world by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's governing body. In the end Internazionale won out, and as the club led in the standings near year's end, Italian soccer fans had come to refer to the player with the shaved head and a knack for scoring goals as "Il Fenomeno." The rest of the world, however, knew him simply as Ronaldo.

      Ronaldo Luiz Nazario da Lima was born Sept. 22, 1976, in Bento Ribeiro, near Rio de Janeiro, and was raised in poverty. Displaying soccer prowess at a young age, he began playing in Brazilian leagues as a teenager in 1990. After scoring 102 goals in 126 matches, Ronaldo left for Europe, where he joined PSV Eindhoven of The Netherlands in 1994. He scored 55 goals in 56 games from 1994 to 1996 before Barcelona paid a $20 million transfer fee to obtain his services. He scored 34 goals in 37 matches while leading that club to the Spanish League Cup and victory in the 1996-97 European Cup-Winners' Cup. Italian powerhouse Internazionale came calling next, paying the young superstar $27 million so that he could buy out his contract with Barcelona and move on to Italy. Barcelona petitioned FIFA to block the deal, claiming the buyout violated international rules for player transfers. Near the end of July, FIFA ruled that the buyout was legitimate and that Ronaldo could join Internazionale. Ronaldo also played with Brazil as it triumphed in the Copa America during the summer, but the youngster still had at least one challenge left: the World Cup. He had been a part of the Brazilian squad that won the World Cup in 1994, but he was just 17 years old at the time and saw no action.

      Rather than being lucky and scoring goals at opportune times, Ronaldo was said to have earned nearly every goal he scored. Tall, strong, and fast, he was an excellent dribbler and could work his way past defenders. But observers noted that Ronaldo had room to improve: He was not terribly effective with the ball inside the goalkeeper's box, and his ability to hit headers in traffic needed work. Ronaldo himself admitted that while he considered himself an accomplished player, he was still not a "complete" player and would not become one until he had matured further. This left the rest of the soccer world to contemplate just what it might be like when the world's best player got even better.

ANTHONY G. CRAINE

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▪ Brazilian athlete

in full  Ronaldo Luiz Nazario de Lima 

born Sept. 22, 1976, Itaguai, Braz.

 

 Brazilian football (football (soccer)) (soccer) player, who led Brazil to a World Cup title in 2002 and who received three Player of the Year awards (1996–97, 2002) from the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA).

      Ronaldo grew up in the poor Rio de Janeiro suburb of Bento Ribeiro. He began playing football as a junior for the neighbourhood Social Ramos Club at age 12 and two years later joined São Cristóvão in the Carioca League. By 1992 he was playing in the Brazilian championship for Cruzeiro. He was a member of Brazil's under-17 South American championship team in 1991 before joining the national side in 1994.

      Ronaldo was transferred in 1994 from Cruzeiro to PSV Eindhoven of The Netherlands, where he scored 55 goals in 56 games and won the 1995 league championship and the 1996 Dutch Cup. After switching to F.C. Barcelona of Spain for the 1996–97 season, he scored 34 goals in 37 appearances and helped his team capture the Spanish Super Cup. Because of his success, Ronaldo was paid $27 million by F.C. Internazionale (Inter Milan) to play for the Italian club in 1997, a record at the time. At Inter his excellent dribbling skills and knack for scoring goals earned him the nickname “Il Fenomeno.” In 1997 Ronaldo became the first player to win FIFA's Player of the Year award two years in a row. In 1999, however, he suffered a serious knee injury that left him unable to play for almost two years.

      Dismissing concerns that his career was over, Ronaldo returned to competitive play in 2001. At the 2002 World Cup he scored eight goals to earn the Golden Boot award as the tournament's top scorer and helped Brazil win its fifth World Cup championship. He then announced that he was leaving Inter for Real Madrid of Spain. After much wrangling, Real agreed to pay a transfer fee of about $46.3 million. In 2002 Ronaldo was named both FIFA Player of the Year and European Footballer of the Year (an award he also had received in 1997). At the 2006 World Cup he scored three goals to bring his career total at the tournament to a record-setting 15. While playing for the Italian powerhouse A.C. Milan in 2008, Ronaldo ruptured a tendon in his left knee—the same type of injury that occurred in his right knee in 1999—which some thought would put his career in jeopardy. In December 2008 a fully recovered Ronaldo signed with the Corinthians in São Paulo.

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