Four hours before Al-Nassr unveil their new £173m-a-year signing and potentially 11 days before he even kicks a ball, the Saudi Arabia club has already benefited from the Cult of Cristiano.
Since Cristiano Ronaldo was confirmed as Al-Nassr’s new player on December 30, the club’s Instagram following has grown exponentially from 887,000 on December 29 to more than 7.5 million.
According to the analytical firm Football Benchmark, Manchester United experienced a rise of more than six million on the social media platform when he rejoined the club in the summer of 2021. Ronaldo’s account is the most followed on Instagram, with more than half a billion, and Al-Nassr believe that his mere presence at the club can lead to huge rises in marketing and commercial opportunities.
