Cristiano Ronaldo is closing in on the 1,000-goal milestone, with just 19 more goals to go, while continuing to lead the line for Riyadh-based Al-Nassr following his high-profile arrival in Saudi Arabia in 2023. Since then, he has helped the club compete for major honours, while his contract extension until 2027 has secured his future in Saudi football for the coming seasons.But while Ronaldo’s achievements in Saudi Arabia are well documented, his connection with the neighbouring UAE goes back much further. In February 2020, nearly three years before joining Al-Nassr, he received the UAE Golden Visa in recognition of his sporting stature, under a programme introduced in 2019 to attract exceptional international talent.What makes his case particularly interesting is that his award was linked to his achievements as an athlete, rather than the more familiar routes involving property investment or business ownership. So, how did Ronaldo qualify for one of the UAE’s most sought-after residency options without playing for a club in the Emirates, and can he retain it while living and working in Saudi Arabia?
Ronaldo received the Golden Visa while playing for Juventus
When Cristiano Ronaldo received his UAE Golden Visa in February 2020, he was a 35-year-old Juventus forward living in Italy, with no immediate plans to take his football career to the Middle East. His recognition came at a time when the UAE was broadening its long-term residency programme to attract talent beyond the investors, entrepreneurs and business professionals who had traditionally been among its main beneficiaries. Under the expanded scheme, distinguished international athletes could also be considered for long-term residency, giving the country a new way to attract high-profile names from the world of sport.
Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo runs celebrating a goal later disallowed by the VAR during the Nations League soccer match between Portugal and Wales in Lisbon, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)
Ronaldo was among the first group of sporting figures recognised under this expanded category, alongside tennis champion Novak Djokovic and footballers Luís Figo, Roberto Carlos, Paul Pogba, Romelu Lukaku and Miralem Pjanić. The idea was to bring internationally recognised athletes closer to the Emirates, encouraging them to maintain ties with the country through regular visits, commercial opportunities and other professional connections.Ronaldo was a natural fit. He had become a regular visitor to Dubai and, just weeks before receiving the visa, had won the Best Men’s Player of the Year award at the Globe Soccer Awards on December 29, 2019, for a record sixth time. His achievements on the pitch gave the UAE a high-profile sporting figure to recognise, while his existing affection for Dubai made the connection all the more fitting.
What the UAE Golden Visa offers and who qualifies
The UAE introduced its Golden Residency programme in 2019 under an initiative announced by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the country’s Vice-President and Prime Minister and Dubai’s ruler. Unlike ordinary residence permits tied to employers or local sponsors, the programme offers eligible foreign nationals long-term residency, allowing them to live, work, study and invest in the Emirates with greater independence.Under the current framework, eligible applicants can receive renewable residency for five or 10 years, depending on their category and the applicable conditions. The main benefits include:
- Long-term stability: Holders receive renewable residency without needing an employer or another local sponsor to maintain their status.
- Family sponsorship: Eligible residents can sponsor their spouses, children regardless of age and parents, alongside domestic workers under the applicable regulations.
- Greater travel flexibility: Golden Visa holders can remain outside the UAE for longer than the usual six-month absence limit without automatically losing their residency.
- Work and investment opportunities: Holders can live, work, study and invest in the UAE while benefiting from the longer residency arrangement.
- Support for overseas applicants: Eligible applicants outside the country may obtain a six-month, multiple-entry visa, renewable for another six months, to complete their residency procedures.
Since its launch in 2019, the UAE Golden Visa programme has expanded to cover a much wider range of people, from investors in public investments and real estate to entrepreneurs, scientists, skilled professionals, outstanding students and graduates, humanitarian pioneers, and exceptional talents such as athletes and figures in culture and the arts. Each category comes with its own eligibility criteria and application or nomination process, depending on the applicant’s background. In other words, there is no single route to securing a Golden Visa; the requirements depend on the category under which someone qualifies.
Why Ronaldo qualified without buying property in Dubai
As mentioned above, Ronaldo did not need to buy property in Dubai or make a qualifying financial investment to receive his Golden Visa. His route was based on his standing as an elite international athlete, following the UAE Cabinet’s expansion of the programme in early February 2020 to include distinguished sporting figures. With five Ballon d’Or awards to his name at the time, a record of success at clubs such as Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus, and an established international career with Portugal, Ronaldo had the sporting credentials to qualify under the newly expanded category. He would later invest in Dubai real estate, reportedly purchasing a luxury waterfront property on Jumeirah Bay Island in 2024 for an estimated €25 million to €30 million, but that came years after his Golden Visa was awarded.The move also reflected a broader shift in how the UAE wanted to attract people to the country. While the Golden Visa was introduced in 2019, it has since become part of the country’s wider long-term development ambitions, including the We the UAE 2031 vision, a national strategy launched on November 22, 2022, to guide the country’s development over the following decade. By extending eligibility beyond investors and entrepreneurs to include exceptional talent in fields such as sport, science and culture, the UAE signalled that its ambitions were not just about attracting money, but also about drawing in expertise, international recognition and people who could strengthen its global profile.For Ronaldo, the benefit was that he did not need to move his playing career to Dubai or join a UAE football club to qualify. The Golden Visa is a residency arrangement, not an employment contract, and eligible holders can spend extended periods outside the country without automatically losing their status under the usual six-month absence rule. That flexibility helps explain how a footballer based in Italy at the time could receive UAE residency and later move to Saudi Arabia without the two arrangements necessarily conflicting.For the UAE, an athlete of Ronaldo’s stature offered a way to attract global talent and put its Golden Visa programme on the international map. With his worldwide following and immense commercial appeal, he was a natural face for a scheme designed to look beyond business and investment.
Ronaldo’s connection with Dubai goes well beyond football
Ronaldo’s relationship with Dubai was well established long before he received the Golden Visa in 2020. The city had become a regular destination for family holidays, yacht outings and sporting events, while his CR7 brand, wider commercial interests and real estate investments in the Emirates have given him even more reason to keep coming back. With its luxury lifestyle and international business scene, Dubai was a natural fit for the football star.He has also built a friendly relationship with some of the city’s best-known figures, including Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai’s Crown Prince. The two have been spotted together on several occasions, from exercising at the Nad Al Sheba Sports Complex to meeting at Dubai’s Aura Skypool in January 2022. Ronaldo once shared a photograph of them on Instagram with the caption, “Always great to see you my friend @faz3.”His fondness for the city has never been much of a secret, either. At a fan event during Expo 2020 Dubai in January 2022, Ronaldo told the crowd: “I love Dubai. Because they treat me unbelievable. I love the people. I love the culture. And I come every year so its nice to be here.”Between family getaways, business ventures and property investments, Dubai has become much more than a holiday stop for Ronaldo. His longstanding connection with the city also helps explain why the UAE recognised him with a Golden Visa, strengthening its ties with one of the world’s most recognisable sporting figures.
How Ronaldo can live in Riyadh and retain his UAE residency
Ronaldo’s move to Saudi Arabia began with an agreement to join Al-Nassr on December 30, 2022, followed by his arrival in Riyadh and official unveiling on January 3, 2023. He and his entourage initially stayed at the Four Seasons Hotel Riyadh at Kingdom Centre, with reports at the time describing a month-long stay costing around $300,000 and involving 17 suites, including a two-storey Kingdom Suite covering approximately 4,000 square feet.The family subsequently moved into an exclusive residential compound in Riyadh, which remains their principal base while Ronaldo plays for Al-Nassr. He extended his contract in June 2025, committing to the Saudi club until 2027, and married Rodríguez in a private civil ceremony in Portugal on August 11, 2026, after their relationship began in 2016.
Ronaldo was seen kissing the Saudi emblem on his shirt and celebrating with a Saudi flag scarf after Al-Nassr’s 3-1 AFC Champions League Elite win over Neftchi Fergana.
Ronaldo’s Saudi residency falls under the Gifted Residency category of the Saudi Premium Residency programme, which, much like the UAE Golden Visa, aims to attract exceptional international talent as part of the kingdom’s wider economic diversification plans. Unlike a standard athlete’s work visa tied to a club, it allows eligible holders to live in Saudi Arabia without an employer sponsor, sponsor family members and own property under the programme’s rules.This means Ronaldo can continue living in the kingdom even if he stops playing for Al-Nassr. The residency is renewable every five years, subject to the programme’s requirements, giving him a longer-term option to remain in Saudi Arabia. When he extended his Al-Nassr contract in 2025, Ronaldo also spoke about his desire to stay in the kingdom for the long term. He has further strengthened his ties to the country through luxury property investments, including a private island villa at Nujuma, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve development on the Red Sea coastFor someone based in Riyadh, Dubai is also an accessible destination, with direct flights typically taking around two hours. Ronaldo can maintain his Dubai connections through visits during breaks from club commitments without needing to make the Emirates his principal residence.More importantly, holding residency in one country does not automatically prevent someone from holding long-term residency in the other. The UAE Golden Visa and Saudi Premium Residency are separate programmes, and there is no general rule requiring holders to choose between the two. For Ronaldo, this means his UAE residency can remain a separate link to the Emirates while he lives and plays in Saudi Arabia, provided he continues to meet the relevant requirements for both. More than six years after receiving the Golden Visa, Ronaldo’s case shows how sporting recognition can create lasting ties with a country, even when his career and home are now firmly rooted across the border in Saudi Arabia.