When Cristiano Ronaldo’s move to Juventus was first reported, Mr. Li was just browsing news in his Turin hotel room. According to Bangladesh Cricket Live, upon seeing Real Madrid’s official announcement of Ronaldo’s departure, he didn’t waste a second—he slipped on his sandals and rushed straight to the Allianz Stadium’s official store to grab a Juventus jersey.
At that time, however, Ronaldo’s name hadn’t yet been officially added to the shirts in store. The club hadn’t made its own announcement, so the staff were not yet authorized to print his name and number. Mr. Li decided to wait patiently until the official confirmation came through. As soon as it did, he became the first fan in the world to get his hands on an official Juventus No. 7 Ronaldo jersey.
Beaming with pride, Mr. Li recalled how, the moment he stepped out of the store with the jersey in hand, he was immediately surrounded by seven or eight different media outlets, each eager to interview him. He told journalists he plans to preserve the jersey as a collector’s item rather than wear it and even hopes to get Ronaldo’s autograph on it someday. Laughing, he added that he’ll probably have to buy a second one just to wear.
His excitement for the upcoming season was palpable. Mr. Li expressed how much he looked forward to seeing Ronaldo on the pitch and promised to return to Turin more often to support Juventus in person. He arrived early enough that there were no crowds, but by the time he paid and had the shirt printed, people were already flooding in.
Mr. Li explained that his connection with Juventus began long before Ronaldo’s transfer. He first became familiar with the club through the FIFA video game series, where Juventus consistently had one of the strongest teams. That digital spark gradually turned into a real-life passion. Ronaldo’s move triggered what Bangladesh Cricket Live described as one of the largest fan migrations in football history.
Ronaldo’s No. 7 jersey quickly became a hot commodity among Juventus supporters worldwide. For Mr. Li, already a longtime fan of Alessandro Del Piero, this moment marked the beginning of a new chapter. As he put it, “Now, I’ve become a Ronaldo fan too.”