It took Cristiano Ronaldo nine years to pop the question to Georgina Rodríguez, having admitted he needed to feel a ‘click’ to marry the mother of their two kids.
Influencer Georgina, 32, even joked that the soccer star, 41, popping the question with an ‘enormous’ diamond ring was ‘the least he could offer’ after waiting for so long to propose.
However, the footballer has openly admitted that he is ‘not a romantic guy’ in the traditional sense, though he insisted he expresses romance in his own manner.
Nevertheless, the pair are rumoured to be marrying today on the island where he grew up, according to reports.
They are said to be tying the knot at Funchal Cathedral, and then the wedding party will head to the five-star Savoy Palace hotel for the reception.
So, as we wait to see if they say ‘I do’ at the altar, the Daily Mail takes a look at their unconventional love story.
It took Cristiano Ronaldo nine years to pop the question to Georgina Rodríguez, after admitting he needed to feel a ‘click’ to marry the mother of their two kids
Influencer Georgina, 32, joked that the soccer star, 41, popping the question with an ‘enormous’ diamond ring was ‘the least he could offer’ after waiting for so long to propose
Georgina was working at a Gucci store in Madrid, earning £10 an hour, when her life changed forever in 2016.
She was meant to leave early that day, but a colleague asked her to stay 30 minutes late to help a VIP client.
When she finally walked out the door, Ronaldo strolled in.
Recalling their meeting, Georgina said: ‘I was finally able to leave the shop to go home three hours later than I should have and as I was getting ready to leave Cristiano came in with his eldest son and some friends.
‘Let’s just say it was butterflies in my stomach.’
Cristiano would then pick Georgina up from work in his £1.5million Bugatti – after she had arrived at the shop on the bus.
‘Many times he’d come after work’, she described in her Netflix series I Am Georgina.
‘He would come, I remember once, once in a Bugatti. My coworkers went crazy. They get there on the bus, and I would leave in a Bugatti. I mean people couldn’t believe it.’
By December, she quit her job shortly after fans began crowding outside the store.
The following month, the pair made their first public appearance at The Best FIFA Football Awards, confirming speculation that they were a couple.
Cristiano and Georgina made their Instagram debut as a couple in March 2017 when the footballer posted a sweet snap of them cuddling on a couch.
He captioned the post with a single red heart emoji.
Georgina was working at a Gucci store in Madrid, earning £10 an hour, when her life changed forever in 2016
Recalling their meeting, Georgina said: ‘Let’s just say it was butterflies in my stomach’
In June, they welcomed twins Mateo and Eva via surrogacy and then five months later, Georgina gave birth to their daughter, Alana Martina.
Then the next month, they announced they were expecting, giving birth to their daughter Alana Martina in November.
The following month, Georgina posed for photos with her newborn daughter Alana for the cover of HOLA!
Revealing how they came up with the name for their daughter, she said: ‘We both chose the name. Cristiano chose Alana and I chose Martina.
‘We decided to give her both names that each of us chose. We thought it was even more special.’
In 2022, the couple welcomed twins; however, their baby boy tragically died during childbirth, while his sister, Bella Esmeralda, survived.
Opening up about how he and Georgina coped with the heartache of losing a baby, the footballer told Piers Morgan at the time: ‘I feel that we always support each other. Sometimes it’s like in a relationship you have good moments, bad moments it is part of the journey.
‘But probably in that period, we consolidated it more, the relationship, but even in the worst moments you have to meet, you have to make the thing smooth.
‘I learned so many things. I saw the other perspective of the life. My daughter, now which is three years old, she is the queen of the family, who made the house happy. Everything happens for a reason. I believe in that. So, we are a blessed family. I am proud of that.’
After nearly a decade together, fans were then desperate to know when Georgina and Cristiano would marry, with their family now complete.
However, in an interview with Marca last year, the Portuguese admitted he hadn’t yet married Georgina because he hadn’t felt the ‘click’.
He said: ‘I always tell her, ‘when we get that click.’ Like everything with our life, and she knows what I’m talking about.
‘It could be in a year or it could be in six months or it could be in a month. I’m 1000% sure that it’ll happen.’
The pair now have two biological children, though she helps raise all five of his kids (Cristiano Jr. (pictured left) hugs his baby sister Eva while Georgina cradles Mateo on her lap, Cristiano (pictured right) holds his two daughters baby Bella and Alana Martina)
In April 2022, the pair announced the tragic death of their newborn baby boy
In August, the footballer finally popped the question with a giant diamond ring.
Fans speculated the pair got engaged the month before after the model shared pictures of a bridal-themed dinner, complete with ‘C heart G’ pillows, a six-piece band and stunning white flower arrangements.
She also wore a giant sparkler on her wedding ring finger, hinting at the pair’s secret engagement.
Georgina gleefully shared the news on Instagram with a photo of her glitzy engagement ring. ‘Yes I do. In this and in all my lives,’ she wrote in a heartfelt caption.
Cristiano then revealed that two of his children inspired him to give Georgina a ‘not-so romantic’ and off-the-cuff proposal.
He revealed that he didn’t plan to propose to the ‘woman of his life’ the night they got engaged, but it felt like the ‘right time’.
‘It was like 1am. My daughters were in bed sleeping,’ the 41-year-old told Piers Morgan in part one of their new interview.
He said: ‘One of my friends gave me the ring to offer Gio (Georgina) and as I was giving her the ring, my two kids come in and say ‘Daddy, you’re going to give the ring to mum and you’re going to ask her to get married.’
‘I said, ‘Wow, this is the right moment to say yes.’ It was the time. I knew that I was going to do it one day but I hadn’t planned to do it then.
‘Because my daughters said that and my friends were filming, it was what I wanted and I offered (the ring). I didn’t (get on one knee) because I wasn’t prepared but it was a beautiful moment. I made a speech.
‘It was simple, I’m not a very romantic guy. Well, I am, but I’m not very romantic, not the kind of guy who brings flowers every week to the home. But I’m romantic in my way. It was beautiful and I knew that it’s the woman of my life so I did that and I hope that I did it well.’
In August last year, the footballer finally popped the question with a giant diamond ring
Asked about when they plan to tie the knot, the footballer joked: ‘Not yet. We plan to do it after the World Cup with the trophy! But she is not the person that likes big parties. She doesn’t like it. She likes private things. So I will respect these decisions.
‘One thing that I love, she didn’t care about the ring. She asked me if I was honest and I said, ‘I want you and I want to marry you.’ I didn’t cry but I had tears on my eyes.’
Experts estimated that Cristiano splashed out an astonishing £1.5million on Georgina’s ring.
Fast forward to today, and the pair are set to ‘tie the knot this weekend’.
The Sun reported he will get married at a cathedral, with weddings usually starting from 3pm before moving to the Savoy Palace hotel, which boasts four restaurants.
A source said: ‘Guests at the hotel have been told two floors will be out of use on Friday and Saturday, as well as several bar areas.’
Funchal is the hometown and birthplace of football star Cristiano. There is a bronze statue in his honour and he even has a hotel named after him.
While he has a huge net worth, his choice to revisit his hometown is hugely sentimental as he grew up in poverty and shared a room with all of his siblings. He left home at the age of 11 to join Sporting Lisbon.
The Daily Mail has contacted Georgina and Cristiano’s representatives for comment.
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