Cristiano Ronaldo Sets New

SPORTS

March 25, 2022 Established 1874

Cristiano Ronaldo Sets New Record, Inspiring Football Fans Worldwide

Cristiano Ronaldo, the best international men’s soccer player, breaks the record for most goals by an individual. Courtesy of Jan Kruger

Editor’s note: This article refers to soccer as football, the name used by Ronaldo and the rest of the international community.

Zoe Kuzbari Sports Editor

Cristiano Ronaldo is arguably the best football player the world has ever seen. Not only has he been named the best player in the world by FIFA three times, but he is now the leading scorer in the history of men’s international football. Ronaldo has had an immense impact on generations of football players and fans, and his recent achievement speaks volumes about his undeniable talent.

Ronaldo has broken records at almost every program he has joined. The Portugal native is currently the top scorer in the history of men’s football with 807 goals. He also holds the record for the most UEFA Champions League titles, with five to his name, as well as the most goals scored in the competition’s history with 141 goals.

As a 37-year-old in one of the most competitive leagues in the world, he has proved that age is just a number. With 20 years of experience and counting, Ronaldo has become the model for everlasting talent. Ronaldo’s work ethic is one of the major contributing factors to his success, and it’s easy to see why so many football fans around the world respect him as a player and a person.

Fourth-year men’s soccer player Alex Caceres highlights how even though he is not a diehard Ronaldo fan, Ronaldo is still an inspiration for any athlete willing to work hard.

“I’m a Messi fan, so hyping Ronaldo up can be difficult,” he said. “But I still believe that the recent record Ronaldo broke speaks to his indisputable hard work ethic both on and off the field. He is an athlete who takes pride in putting in the necessary work in order to achieve the goals and dreams that he has set forth for himself.”

Caceres says that Ronaldo is a true inspiration for athletes across all sports, not just football players, because his confidence drives the results he has as an athlete.

“Every athlete who wants to be the best should follow suit,” he said. “Ronaldo does everything he possibly can to separate himself from the rest. His success is what makes him so popular, but his drive and passion to be the best is what really sets him apart and inspires any young athlete around the world.”

Longtime football fan and College third-year Oliver Ripps believes Ronaldo’s greatness radiates beyond his innate football abilities. He says that even those who don’t understand the sport of football can tell that Ronaldo knows what he’s doing on the field.

“Ronaldo truly has the wow factor,” he said. “Every time he touches the ball, every fan watching — regardless of football knowledge — is on their feet ready to watch something amazing, bracing for the ring of the ball launched into the back of the net. There’s no better way to quantify that impact than being the all-time FIFA goal-scoring leader.”

Fourth-year men’s soccer player Nicolas Jandeleit recognizes the importance of Ronaldo’s record-breaking career from a historical perspective, emphasizing that before Ronaldo came onto the scene, no one thought the scoring record could be broken.

“Pelé set the record back in 1977, and for a long time it seemed like no one would ever come close to beating it,” Jandeleit said. “In the past 45 years, the game of football has evolved into a much more competitive environment, but Ronaldo was still able to break that record and continues to score today. I personally think that him beating this record is much more of an inspiration to younger players than anything else. Young talent can look at this impressive number and think to themselves that maybe one day they can beat it.”

According to Jandeleit, Ronaldo has a very unique style of play. He uses flashy tricks and skills to beat players and score goals.

“As a kid, I would watch all of his highlight videos of him making insane shots and executing some of the most beautiful plays,” he said. “These videos made me fall in love with the game of soccer. His style of play is fun to watch and makes the game entertaining, which has helped him gain the attention of younger football players like myself.”

Jandeleit thinks what sets Ronaldo apart from other players is his mentality.

“He strives to be the best in the world and has this ability to score clutch goals under immense amounts of pressure,” he said. “The whole world watches him play, and billions of people look up to him — the fact that he is able to execute as well as he does every single time and not come off as nervous is amazing.”

College third-year and avid football fan Jack Povilaitis believes that another reason so many people look up to Ronaldo is because of the brand he’s built for himself off the field.

“Ronaldo’s record highlights his football abilities, but we can’t forget about his off-the-pitch success as well,” Povilaitis said. “He has the most Instagram followers on the app (415 million) and has his own brand partnered with Nike that soccer players revere. Especially in a sport full of individual brands, Ronaldo’s is the biggest for soccer.”

Like Caceres, Povilaitis is not a devoted Ronaldo fan, but still greatly admires his achievements and sees him as an inspiration.

“Love football or not, you’ve got to tip your cap to the lad,” he said. “We aren’t going to see this record broken for a long time — maybe ever.”

Volume 151, Number 16

Change Coming for NCAA Women’s March Madness

The University of South Carolina women’s basketball team bench celebrates on the sidelines during the March Madness tournament.

Courtesy of Sean Rayfod

Kayla Kim

Production Editor

After a hectic first and second round in the Women’s NCAA March Madness tournament, there is some calm before the next round: the Sweet 16.

The first round saw six upsets and some excellent plays. In a game against Montana State University, Fran Belibi of Stanford University became the third woman to succcesfully dunk in a March Madness game. Using a stifling defense, No. 12 seed Belmont University upset No. 5 seed University of Oregon in double overtime — the first double overtime in a March Madness tournament since 2013. Led by guards Abby Meyers and Kaitlyn Chen, No. 11 seed Princeton University added to their 18-game winning streak to upset No. 6 seed University of Kentucky, the defending Southeastern Conference Champion. The Princeton Tigers fought fiercely in the second round but fell to No. 3 seed Indiana University by just one point.

Madness continued in the second round, starting with No. 10 seed Creighton University upsetting No. 2 seed University of Iowa. In bitter irony, Lauren Jensen, an Iowa transfer, shot the winning 3-pointer in front of a large crowd of thousands of Hawkeye fans. Olivia Miles, the freshman standout from No. 5 seed University of Notre Dame, helped the Fighting Irish beat No. 4 seed University of Oklahoma in a 108–64 victory, one of the top performances by a lower seeded team. And finally, the No. 10 seed University of South Dakota took down No. 2 seed Baylor University after hitting eight of 16 3-pointers and securing many defensive rebounds. Both tactics ended Baylor University’s 12-year Sweet 16 streak. Cinderella teams South Dakota and Creighton will be dancing in the Sweet 16 for the first time in their school histories.

Compared to the first and second rounds, I don’t think there will be as many upsets in the Sweet 16. Despite some shakiness and underperformances in previous rounds, I think top-ranked teams such as the University of Connecticut, the University of South Carolina, and the University of Louisville will continue, and I’m excited to see some of my favorite players such as Aliyah Boston, Hailey Van Lith, and Azzi Fudd make some madness. However,