Portuguese football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo married his longtime partner, Georgina Rodriguez, on August 11 in a private ceremony at their new summer house in Cascais, Portugal. The couple exchanged vows in the living room of their home, surrounded by their five children.
Until now, only one image from the wedding had been made public, showing Ronaldo and Georgina holding hands and displaying their wedding rings. However, Vogue magazine on Sunday revealed pictures, videos and details from the ceremony, which had sparked considerable curiosity among the public.
What was expected to be a lavish celebration instead became an intimate ceremony attended by just nine people in the living room of their home. This was in contrast to earlier media reports suggesting a huge guest list that included names such as Rio Ferdinand and Rihanna.
Present were their five children: Cristiano Ronaldo Jr., twins Eva and Mateo, and the couple’s two daughters, Alana Martina and Bella Esmeralda. Four other guests attended: Miguel Paixão, a friend of Ronaldo’s since his youth at Sporting; Ivana Rodríguez, Georgina’s sister; and their friends José Rodríguez Sangil and Mónica González Martínez, a Spanish jeweller, and his wife.
Why did Ronaldo and Georgina choose a private ceremony?
While Georgina, a model, mother and founder of activewear line Mimoa, said they would have a big wedding in the future with their friends and family, the couple chose an intimate ceremony to create a personal memory their family could cherish for years.
“In the future we will have a big wedding, so we can celebrate with family and friends,” Georgina told Vogue a week before the August 11 wedding.
“When I was a little girl,” she reflected, “I dreamt of the biggest castle, the biggest carriage, the longest dress, a crown full of diamonds. And now I’m saying: no. I want something intimate, with my partner and our children, at home. Because castles, houses, islands, horses, cars: We have all of that within reach every day. But something intimate—that’s more unusual for us.”
But why the living room?
“We’ve chosen to do it in the living room of our house here,” Georgina explained, “where we have breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and where we live the reality of our lives. In 30 years’ time I want the children to think, Something wonderful happened at this table—the wedding vows of our parents.”
Ronaldo interrupted with a timely comic interjection: “It probably won’t be the same table. We might change the decor,” prompting an aggrieved look from Georgina.
Symbolic meaning behind the date, venue
Amid what Ronaldo and Georgina described as a “crazy year” of “work commitments, competitions, kids”, the couple did not want their 10-year anniversary to pass unmarked.
It was on the same date in 2016 that the two first met, when the then-Real Madrid star walked into a Gucci store on Calle Serrano in Madrid with his six-year-old son, Cristiano Jr.
The meeting was a chance encounter, or, as Georgina put it, “That’s destiny.”
She had just returned from England and had taken a job as a sales assistant at the Gucci store. She was not supposed to be working that day, but was covering for a friend.
“I had my back to her and then I turned around and saw her. Our eyes met, and from that point on it was…,” Ronaldo said.
“It was a dream,” Georgina added.
Why the summer house in Cascais?
That, too, had a connection to the number seven, CR7’s famous shirt number, and perhaps the couple’s lucky number.
Vogue detailed that the couple had taken possession of the house in July and that it had taken seven years to build.
“It’s perfect,” Georgina said. “All number sevens are signs.”
What did Ronaldo and Georgina wear?
Given the couple’s relationship with the luxury fashion house, Ronaldo and Georgina wore Gucci on their wedding day.
Georgina donned a white silk faille skirt suit with matching satin shoes featuring the signature silver horsebit detail. Ronaldo wore a custom light beige cotton suit and custom loafers, while the children wore matching outfits.
After the wedding ceremony, the couple travelled to the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima, about an hour away, where a priest closed off a small sanctuary and blessed their union.
There was no honeymoon. The couple left for Riyadh the next day, with Ronaldo returning to training for Al Nassr.
