Ronaldo Effect: Portugal loses over 900,000 followers after CR7's departure

Cristiano Ronaldo's abrupt departure from the Portugal national team's camp caused an immediate tremor in the football world and also on social media. The official account of the national team on Instagram recorded a drop of more than 700,000 followers in just over 24 hours since the conflict with coach Jorge Jesus became known.

Until the day before the outburst, the verified profile of Portugal boasted nearly 24.9 million followers. After the news, the number dropped to 24 million. During the last World Cup, it had surpassed 25 million. The explanation is simple: a significant portion of that audience followed the team almost exclusively because of the star's presence.

With 679 million followers, Ronaldo remains the individual account with the widest reach on Instagram worldwide. His absence from the squad was immediately reflected in the national team's numbers.

The sister of the Al-Nassr forward, Elma Aveiro, was quick to react. Through stories on her account, she supported Cristiano and shared the news of the drop in followers with the message “Here we go, the world turns many times”. She also lashed out at Portuguese critics: “As for the Portuguese people, well... they don't deserve to have the best in anything. We are envious, disdainful, ignorant, and we deserve to return to the mediocrity we always had in football before CR7.”

The details of the breakup

According to the newspaper Marca, Ronaldo left the facilities of the Portuguese Federation in a black van and was scheduled to take a private flight to Madrid. The departure occurred shortly after the coach publicly denied the existence of problems with the historic goalscorer.

The player himself explained his stance on social media: “After the press conference of the National Team coach, and after a conversation with the president of the Portuguese Football Federation, I decided to leave the national team's training ground.”

However, he left the door open to provide more details: “In due time, I will tell the truth to all the Portuguese about the reasons that motivated me to leave the national team, to which I have always dedicated myself.”

In the same message, he wished luck to his teammates and the team “without exception.” The decision to leave the camp amid the friction with Jorge Jesus not only shook the locker room but also left a clear mark on the digital popularity of the national team.