Ronaldo

Ronaldo in 2007, photo by Prphotos.com

Birth Name: Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima

Place of Birth: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Date of Birth: 18 September, 1976

Ethnicity: Brazilian [African, Portuguese]

Ronaldo is a Brazilian professional footballer, who played as a striker. He is the son of Sônia dos Santos Barata and Nélio Nazário de Lima. He is popularly dubbed O Fenômeno, “The Phenomenon,” and is widely considered one of the greatest football players of all time.

Regarding racism in football, he has said, “I think that all blacks suffer (with racism). I, that am white, suffer because of so much ignorance.” In response to this, his father, Nélio Nazário de Lima, Sr., a dark-skinned Afro-Brazilian, stated, “He knows quite well that he is black… In truth, at the time I thought it was some type of philosophy, something in this sense… because he knows that he is black.” A picture of Ronaldo’s mother can be found here.

Ronald has two children with his wife, Maria Beatriz Antony; a son with his former wife footballer Milene Domingues; and a son with Michele Umezu.