Cristiano Ronaldo is facing backlash after making an obscene gesture toward fans after Al Nassr’s win on Sunday night in the Saudi Pro League.
The Portuguese footballer was celebrating with his team on the pitch after they downed Al Shabab 3-2 when opposing fans started chanting the name of Ronaldo’s rival, Lionel Messi.
As the “Messi” chants continued, Ronaldo put his hand to his ear and then proceeded to pump his right hand in a forward motion near his groin area.
While television cameras did not catch the gesture, according to Reuters, a fan inside the stadium certainly did and the moment quickly made its rounds around the internet.
Ronaldo was lambasted by some Saudi pundits who called for a suspension for the league’s biggest star, Reuters reported.
Saudi newspaper Asharq al-Awsat reported that the country’s football federation had opened an investigation into the incident, but Al Nassr had not made any official comments about it.
Ronaldo scored in the 21st minute to put Al Nassr up 1-0 in the rowdy match, but it took a late goal from Talisca in the 86th minute to seal the win.
Saudi soccer fans seem to be learning that the name Messi is sure to irk Ronaldo to the point that he’s going to respond and Sunday’s incident isn’t the first that has happened.
In April 2023, Ronaldo made another obscene gesture by grabbing his crotch as he walked off the field after Al-Hilal fans had chanted Messi’s name to get under Ronaldo’s skin.
Later that same year, he blew kisses to the crowd when they did it again to rile up the international soccer star.
Taunting had once again gotten the best of Ronaldo earlier this month when he picked up an Al Hilal scarf that had been thrown from the stands at him and put it in his shorts before tossing it away.
That incident occurred following a 2-0 Al Nassr loss in the Riyadh Season Cup final.