Cristiano Ronaldo is preparing for his post-football life: padel is at the heart of his new life

Cristiano Ronaldo is already seriously thinking about life after football. At 41, the Portuguese star told Vogue that this season will "probably" be his last, and when discussing how he plans to spend this new chapter, one sport explicitly emerged: padel. This statement is far from insignificant given CR7's already strong ties to the sport, from his regular matches to his investments in Portugal.

“Watching and playing padel”

The information comes directly from Cristiano Ronaldo In a lengthy interview given to Vogue , published on August 16, 2026 and made on the occasion of his marriage to Georgina Rodríguez, the Portuguese openly discusses the end of his career.

« This is probably my last year of football and I want to leave a spectacular legacy "He says.

At 41, the Al-Nassr striker insists he has already thought about what comes next. After roughly 25 years in professional football, Ronaldo knows that retiring can leave a considerable void.

He then explains that he wants to fill his time in different ways: spending more time with his family, traveling… but also "Watch and play padel" , a sport that he specifies he "really loves".

A short sentence that could almost go unnoticed in the middle of an interview devoted to her marriage and her future. In the world of padel, however, it takes on a whole new dimension.

Because Cristiano Ronaldo is no longer simply a footballer who occasionally plays padel during his holidays.

Ronaldo had already stated: "I play every day"

His passion for pala has been documented for several years.

In February 2025, the International Federation of Padel had already dedicated an article to his presence at Riyadh Season Premier Padel P1 Seated in the stands, Ronaldo had notably followed the Portuguese players Nuno and Miguel Deus.

FIP then recalled a particularly revealing statement from the Portuguese player:

"I play every day."

A frequency obviously dependent on his schedule with Al-Nassr, but which testifies to the place that padel takes in his daily life.

Ronaldo plays in Saudi Arabia whenever his schedule allows, but also in Portugal. And he has already shared the pitch with some of the best in the world, including Arturo Coello , world number 1.

In other words, when CR7 explains today that he wants to "play more padel" after his career, he's not talking about discovering a new sport. Rather, he's planning to give even more space to a sport that's already well established in his life.

Owner of the Lisboa Racket Centre

The link between Ronaldo and padel does not stop at playing the sport.

La FIP officially presents Cristiano Ronaldo as the owner of the Lisboa Racket Centre , a racquet sports complex located in the Portuguese capital.

In September 2025, the site hosted an international circuit competition for the first time with the FIP Silver Lisboa Racket Center .

The FIP then presented the event as being organized "at Cristiano Ronaldo's home," describing the football legend as long-time padel enthusiast and owner of the sports center .

Even though he was held up in Saudi Arabia by his obligations with Al-Nassr, Ronaldo had followed the event remotely: The finals were broadcast live on his YouTube channel , as had already been the case a few months earlier for the Riyadh P1.

A few weeks later, the Lisboa Racket Centre also hosted a FIP Promises , an international competition for young people, with U12, U14, U16 and U18 categories.

Padel is therefore already present in several dimensions of the CR7 universe: practitioner, spectator, infrastructure owner and media liaison for the professional circuit .

The City of Padelanother symbol of his commitment to Portugal

Ronaldo is also linked to a much more ambitious project: the city of Padel , in Oeiras, near Lisbon.

The project, carried out in partnership with the Portuguese Padel Federation, envisions a large-scale complex including 17 padel courts , a majority of which are covered, as well as a central track designed to host major competitions.

The site is also intended to house the headquarters of the Portuguese Padel Federation .

As early as 2023, the involvement of Cristiano Ronaldo's investment company in this project was announced. This already confirmed that the Portuguese player's interest went far beyond a simple leisure activity.

Football allowed him to build a global brand. Padel now seems to be one of the sectors in which he wants to invest and be involved in the long term.

However, this project would at least be suspended.

Even a competitor with a racket in hand

Ronaldo's character clearly does not disappear when he steps onto a track.

In the spring of 2026, the British player Nikhil Mohindra had told Telegraph a week spent in Dubai playing and training padel with Cristiano Ronaldo.

This experience mainly allowed us to see that CR7 also approached this sport with the ingredients that shaped his football career: preparation, high standards, attention to detail and a constant desire to improve.

At 41 years old, his physique and athletic qualities are obviously considerable assets on a padel court.

But his interest seems to go beyond simply looking for a sport to stay in shape after football.

From football to padel, an almost natural transition?

Cristiano Ronaldo is obviously not the first great footballer to fall in love with padel. Many former professionals have taken up the sport after their careers.

But with CR7, the scale changes.

We are talking about one of the most famous athletes on the planet, followed by hundreds of millions of people on social media and capable of giving global visibility to the projects he is involved in.

His involvement in padel could therefore become particularly interesting once he has hung up his cleats.

Especially since his comments to Vogue come at a time when Ronaldo seems to be genuinely preparing for this transition.

"Football could leave a big void." He essentially acknowledges this. His objective will therefore be to divide his time between several activities.

Travel more. Enjoy time with family. Have fun.

Et watch and play more padel .

Franck Binisti

Franck Binisti discovered padel at the Club des Pyramides in 2009 in the Paris region. Since then, padel has been part of his life. You often see him touring France to cover major French padel events.