Ronaldo bust looks nothing like Ronaldo, and the internet has a field day
A statue of Portuguese soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo has quickly become a social media sensation -- but not for the reasons you might think.
Ronaldo, 32, was attending a ceremony at Madeira International Airport -- renamed Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport in his honor -- in Funchal, Portugal, on Wednesday when a bronze bust of his “likeness” was unveiled.
The statue immediately turned heads, including Ronaldo’s, as he stood on stage in front of a large crowd. It was obvious the statue, which was meant to reflect the soccer star’s perfect smile and slicked-back hair, looked nothing like him.
Nevertheless, the Real Madrid forward smiled and joined in on the applause. He even posed for photos next to the large bronze head.
“[I’m] happy and honored to have my name given to the Madeira airport,” he wrote on Twitter Wednesday afternoon, though he didn’t include any photos of the statue.
It didn’t take long for the internet to respond with glee to the bust’s goofy grin and slightly cocked brow. It’s certainly not the image fostered by Ronaldo, who once declared: “I am handsome, rich and a great player and people are jealous of me.”
Users even started to make their own comparisons to the bust -- many of which referenced the character Sloth from the movie “The Goonies.”
Others, however, compared it to a clown:
Beaker from “The Muppet Show”:
And former Irish professional soccer player Niall John Quinn:
Basically, anyone but Cristiano Ronaldo.
This isn’t the first time a statue depicting Ronaldo has made headlines. In 2014, a statue of the soccer star was unveiled in Madeira, Portugal, the island where the star soccer player was raised. People were quick to point out the statue’s unusually “tight shorts.”
Ronald didn’t seem to mind, however, joking that now there was finally someone “prettier” than him.
The internet mockery of Ronaldo’s bust was also reminiscent of the infamous court sketch of New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady during the first “Deflategate” civil suit hearing in Manhattan.
Artist Jane Rosenberg’s portrayal was compared with everything from Lurch in “The Addams Family” to the figure in Edvard Munch’s “The Scream.”
“I try to capture somebody’s essence quickly, so it’s not going to be perfect,” she said.
It wasn’t immediately known who created Ronaldo’s bust, but it’s bound to come out eventually -- and the internet will be waiting with bated breath for an explanation.
