He grew up on a tiny, windswept island in the Atlantic, where life was humble and dreams felt distant. A sudden heart scare once threatened to end those dreams before they began. Born in 1985, the boy faced hardship from the start—his mother, desperate and alone, even tried to end her pregnancy after taking misguided advice.

Miraculously, he survived. His father later drank himself to death, but the boy pressed on, driven by talent and determination. Years later, a rare childhood photo resurfaced online, showing a shy smile that fans instantly recognized. “Can’t believe this was him,” one wrote. The boy named after Ronald Reagan would rise to become one of the greatest athletes on earth—Cristiano Ronaldo.