Cristiano Ronaldo to Juventus

Senator Donut

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A chorus of media outlets are now reporting Ronaldo to Juventus is a done deal at EUR 105,000,000. I'm still shocked by this. Ronaldo is 33 and at a age where even his younger competitors, such as Wayne Rooney, are moving away from the world's top leagues due to declining skills. Still he's the reigning Ballon d'Or winner and this is the first time since relegation that Juve can claim to have the best player in the world on their squad. It seems like a big step forward for a club that remains just on the outside of Europe's truly elite (as crazy as that sounds for a side that has been in two of the last four Champions League finals).

Edit: it's official!
https://www.realmadrid.com/noticias/2018/07/comunicado-oficial-cristiano-ronaldo
 

BigSoxFan

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A chorus of media outlets are now reporting Ronaldo to Juventus is a done deal at EUR 105,000,000. I'm still shocked by this. Ronaldo is 33 and at a age where even his younger competitors, such as Wayne Rooney, are moving away from the world's top leagues due to declining skills. Still he's the reigning Ballon d'Or winner and this is the first time since relegation that Juve can claim to have the best player in the world on their squad. It seems like a big step forward for a club that remains just on the outside of Europe's truly elite (as crazy as that sounds for a side that has been in two of the last four Champions League finals).

Edit: it's official!
https://www.realmadrid.com/noticias/2018/07/comunicado-oficial-cristiano-ronaldo
Soccer novice here but isn't this a great deal for Real Madrid? They paid around 130EUR to get him from Manchester United and now are recouping all but around 25EUR back from Juventus while benefitting from having Ronaldo in his prime.

Any idea what the expected economics are for Juventus? They'll obviously have a better team but the ticketing, marketing, merchandise, etc. must be crazy for a guy this popular.
 

SoxFanInCali

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After all those times threatening to leave Real, looks like it's finally happening. I guess other than wanting to get away from the Spanish tax authorities, he wants to have a winner's medal from the traditional top 3 leagues.

Get ready for the Neymar to Real rumors to move into overdrive.
 

67YAZ

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Soccer novice here but isn't this a great deal for Real Madrid? They paid around 130EUR to get him from Manchester United and now are recouping all but around 25EUR back from Juventus while benefitting from having Ronaldo in his prime.

Any idea what the expected economics are for Juventus? They'll obviously have a better team but the ticketing, marketing, merchandise, etc. must be crazy for a guy this popular.
Soccer economics are very different than American professional sports in large part because clubs are individual organizations, not franchises. This means there is huge variation from club to club and from league to league in revenue steams, particularly sharing media income. And a lot of the business dealings are really opaque, though the dude over at the Swiss Ramble used to yeoman's work running down the numbers.

So yeah, seems like good business for Real, who get a huge fee for a player asking for a raise despite starting his decline. (That said, Ronaldo is declining from a much higher point than almost any other player in history and he has always maintained in incredible fitness level. He should remain lethal for years to come, even if this is his last Ballon d'Or. And no, I won't bet on that.). Now they can set their sites on Neymar.

For Juventus, I'm sure this is a very, very complicated deal. There were rumblings that they were recruiting one of their sponsors to subsidize the fee and salary. And I have no doubt Ronaldo has a very well paid phalanx of lawyers and accountants focused on an image rights deal unlike any other. Ronaldo definitely puts some glamour back in the Juventus brand, especially since the iconic Buffon just decamped for PSG. But it's hard to say if this will really boost their bottom line all that much unless Ronaldo can lead them to a Champions League victory.
 

BigSoxFan

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Soccer economics are very different than American professional sports in large part because clubs are individual organizations, not franchises. This means there is huge variation from club to club and from league to league in revenue steams, particularly sharing media income. And a lot of the business dealings are really opaque, though the dude over at the Swiss Ramble used to yeoman's work running down the numbers.

So yeah, seems like good business for Real, who get a huge fee for a player asking for a raise despite starting his decline. (That said, Ronaldo is declining from a much higher point than almost any other player in history and he has always maintained in incredible fitness level. He should remain lethal for years to come, even if this is his last Ballon d'Or. And no, I won't bet on that.). Now they can set their sites on Neymar.

For Juventus, I'm sure this is a very, very complicated deal. There were rumblings that they were recruiting one of their sponsors to subsidize the fee and salary. And I have no doubt Ronaldo has a very well paid phalanx of lawyers and accountants focused on an image rights deal unlike any other. Ronaldo definitely puts some glamour back in the Juventus brand, especially since the iconic Buffon just decamped for PSG. But it's hard to say if this will really boost their bottom line all that much unless Ronaldo can lead them to a Champions League victory.
Thanks! Very helpful context for this deal.
 

SocrManiac

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I'm warming to the idea of having one of (the?) best players in the world join the squad. I just viscerally don't like him, though I respect his ability. I'm curious to see if all the CR7 jerseys I see on kids transition to black and white stripes.

I'm more concerned about what other dominoes fall as a result of this. I'd like to be able to retain La Joya. Couldn't care less about Higuain. Alex Sandro and Douglas Costa are two important pieces I'd like to retain, but something has to give, right?

The thought of Dybala, Pjanic, and Ronaldo standing over a free kick 20 yards away will give all of Serie A fits.
 

koufax32

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Wow. I thought the rumors were for the purpose of extracting more coin from RM. The ripple effect will be massive here. The list of names that will rumored to be on their way to Madrid will be impressive. Relatedly, surely this keeps Bale there, right?

Neymar
Mbappe
Pogba
who else??
 

SocrManiac

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Del Piero was certainly among the best before the knee injury. Zidane is probably the most likely candidate before that.

I think you forgot Salah and Hazard, @koufax32.
 

Zomp

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Wow. I thought the rumors were for the purpose of extracting more coin from RM. The ripple effect will be massive here. The list of names that will rumored to be on their way to Madrid will be impressive. Relatedly, surely this keeps Bale there, right?

Neymar
Mbappe
Pogba
who else??
Hazard has flirted already. I also don't know about Bale. I mean he probably stays but if they want to bring in one of the above and their new coach's love for Isco isn't just a rumor Bale could be on the outside looking in again.
 

koufax32

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Del Piero was certainly among the best before the knee injury. Zidane is probably the most likely candidate before that.

I think you forgot Salah and Hazard, @koufax32.
Hazard, yes. Maybe it’s my red colored glasses but I don’t see Salah leaving weeks after signing a new contract.
 

koufax32

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Well, not this season anyway
Right. It’s very possible in a year or two. But that would mean RM will not have filled that roster hole with excellence yet. I don’t see that happening.

Selling Bale and playing Isco, Hazard, and Pogba together would be impressive.
 

Vinho Tinto

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Juventus is playing Bayern on the 25th in Philadelphia, Benfica on the 28th at Red Bull Arena, MLS All Stars in Atlanta on 8/1, and Madrid at FedEx Field on 8/4.

The people behind these games are heavyweights. I’m sure they will push for Ronaldo to appear at all 4.
 

InstaFace

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I'm surprised the price was that high, frankly. Who else might have been bidding? There can't have been huge demand given the salary numbers. Would any EPL club have gotten anywhere near 9 figures?
 

nolasoxfan

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The guy keeps himself in fantastic shape and works incredibly hard to be the best at his craft. I may not like his antics on the pitch, but I have tremendous respect for the way he approaches his trade.

I lean toward Roma as a Serie A team, but I hope he grabs a title @ Juv.
 

67YAZ

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Turns out Juventus stock is up by over 35% this past week while Ronaldo rumors swirled. That’s from €0.66 to €0.90 for those keeping score. Clearly entering into a joint venture with Ronaldo, Inc generates investor excitement.
 

speedracer

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I don't watch Serie A at all -- how repeatable is Napoli's run from last year? Just wondering how much rest CRonaldo would be able to get during the domestic season.
 

SocrManiac

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It's not. They had an all-time great season. The issue has been depth. They fade at the end of the campaign.
 

67YAZ

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Napoli already lost their manager and are about to lose their midfield engine, Jorginho. But I think they have been investing well this summer - Ancellottii will be a steady hand and they’ve already spent over £70m on 3 talented, young sigingings: Alex Meret (21), Fabian Ruiz (22), and Simone Verdi (25). That fills a hole in net and provide depth and flexibility in the midfield along with their world class prospect, Diawara. The key for Napoli will be how they invest the Jorginho money and if they can keep the rest of he squad in tact post-World Cup. They should be in the mix for he Champions League again. No one is catching Juventus.

Edit: I like what Monchi is doing at Roma. He’s finding some great value for players at different points in their careers. A lot of new signings in this summer, though, so they may take a bit to get rolling.

Inter has been more quiet on the transfer front, but have made some key improvements with Nainggolan & de Vrij. I suppose they’re the most likely challenger to Juventus, but still likely 10+ points behind them when things are said and done.
 
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