Cristiano Ronaldo Just Avoids Being Hit by a Fan Who Jumped from the Crowd to Get to Him at Euros 

Portugal's forward #07 Cristiano Ronaldo reacts after he lost the UEFA Euro 2024 Group F football match between Georgia and Portugal at the Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen on June 26, 2024. (AFP)
Portugal's forward #07 Cristiano Ronaldo reacts after he lost the UEFA Euro 2024 Group F football match between Georgia and Portugal at the Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen on June 26, 2024. (AFP)
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Cristiano Ronaldo Just Avoids Being Hit by a Fan Who Jumped from the Crowd to Get to Him at Euros 

Portugal's forward #07 Cristiano Ronaldo reacts after he lost the UEFA Euro 2024 Group F football match between Georgia and Portugal at the Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen on June 26, 2024. (AFP)
Portugal's forward #07 Cristiano Ronaldo reacts after he lost the UEFA Euro 2024 Group F football match between Georgia and Portugal at the Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen on June 26, 2024. (AFP)

Cristiano Ronaldo narrowly avoided being hit by a fan who jumped from the crowd to try to get close to the soccer star when Portugal played Georgia at the European Championship on Wednesday.

A video widely circulated on social media appears to show someone leaping over the top of the players' tunnel at the Veltins Arena in Gelsenkirchen as Ronaldo headed to the locker room.

A safety steward rushed to shield the former Real Madrid and Manchester United star and other security staff race toward the fan, who falls away out of sight.

A bemused-looking Ronaldo stops, but appears to be unharmed. Portugal lost the game 2-0.

Portugal’s Football Federation confirmed the incident, but did not comment. European soccer's governing body UEFA said it was aware of the incident.

Ronaldo is one of the most famous sporting icons in the world with a massive fan base, which includes 632 million followers on Instagram and nearly 112 million on X.

During Portugal's previous match against Türkiye in Dortmund on Saturday he was confronted on the field by four supporters who wanted selfies.

Ronaldo posed for a selfie with a young fan who evaded stewards to get on the field in the 69th minute, but looked frustrated when more entered the field later in the game and after the final whistle.

Portugal Roberto Martinez coach said after that game that the Al Nassr forward was fortunate not to have been harmed and raised concerns over his security.

"We all love a fan that recognizes the big stars and the big icons in their minds," he said. "But you can understand it was a very, very difficult moment — if those intentions are wrong, the players are exposed and we need to be careful with that."

The 39-year-old has become the first player to appear at six European Championships and although he is yet to score at this year's tournament, he holds the record for the most goals at the Euros with 14.

Despite the shock loss to Georgia, Portugal advanced to the knockout phase of Euro 2024 and will play Slovenia in the round of 16 in Frankfurt on Monday.



Australia Beats US at Davis Cup to Reach Semifinals

Tennis - Davis Cup Finals - Quarter Final - United States v Australia - Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena Arena, Malaga, Spain - November 21, 2024   Australia's Jordan Thompson and Matthew Ebden celebrate winning their doubles match against Ben Shelton and Tommy Paul of the US REUTERS/Juan Medina
Tennis - Davis Cup Finals - Quarter Final - United States v Australia - Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena Arena, Malaga, Spain - November 21, 2024 Australia's Jordan Thompson and Matthew Ebden celebrate winning their doubles match against Ben Shelton and Tommy Paul of the US REUTERS/Juan Medina
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Australia Beats US at Davis Cup to Reach Semifinals

Tennis - Davis Cup Finals - Quarter Final - United States v Australia - Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena Arena, Malaga, Spain - November 21, 2024   Australia's Jordan Thompson and Matthew Ebden celebrate winning their doubles match against Ben Shelton and Tommy Paul of the US REUTERS/Juan Medina
Tennis - Davis Cup Finals - Quarter Final - United States v Australia - Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena Arena, Malaga, Spain - November 21, 2024 Australia's Jordan Thompson and Matthew Ebden celebrate winning their doubles match against Ben Shelton and Tommy Paul of the US REUTERS/Juan Medina

Australia reached the Davis Cup semifinals for the third consecutive year, eliminating the United States 2-1 when Matt Ebden and Jordan Thompson beat the surprise, last-minute pairing of Ben Shelton and Tommy Paul 6-4, 6-4 in the deciding doubles match on Thursday.
The victory on an indoor hard court at the Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martina Carpena in southern Spain means 28-time Davis Cup champion Australia will face defending champion Italy or Argentina on Saturday for a spot in the final of the annual team competition, The Associated Press reported.
The other semifinal, to be contested Friday, is the Netherlands against Germany. The Dutch got past Rafael Nadal and Spain in the quarterfinals earlier in the week, sending the 22-time Grand Slam champion into retirement.
The Australians were the runners-up the past two years, including in 2023 against Italy, which is led by No. 1-ranked Jannik Sinner.
The Americans own a record 32 Davis Cup titles but haven’t been to the semifinals since 2018 and haven’t claimed the title since 2007, their longest drought in the event.
The Shelton-Paul substitution for Paris Olympics silver medalists Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram was announced about 15 minutes before the doubles match began. Ebden and John Peers beat Krajicek and Ram in the Summer Games final in August.
The Australians broke once in each set of the doubles. In the second, they stole one of Shelton's service games on the fourth break opportunity when Ebden's overhead smash made it 5-4. Thompson then served out the victory, closing it with a service winner before chest-bumping Ebden.
The 21st-ranked Shelton made his Davis Cup debut earlier Thursday in singles against 77th-ranked Thanasi Kokkinakis, who emerged from a tight-as-can-be tiebreaker by saving four match points and eventually converting his seventh to win 6-1, 4-6, 7-6 (14).
No. 4 Taylor Fritz, the US Open runner-up, then pulled the Americans even with a far more straightforward victory over No. 9 Alex de Minaur, 6-3, 6-4.
Kokkinakis withstood 21 aces from Shelton, a big-serving left-hander who reached the US Open semifinals in 2023.
When their match finally ended, on a backhand by Shelton that landed long, Kokkinakis dropped onto his back and pounded his chest. After he rose, he threw a ball into the stands, then walked over to Australia's sideline, spiked his racket and yelled, before hugging captain Lleyton Hewitt.
“I don’t know if I've been that pumped up in my life. I wanted that for my team,” said Kokkinakis, who won the 2022 Australian Open men's doubles title with Nick Kyrgios. “It could have gone either way, but I kept my nerve.”
One key stat: Shelton finished with 29 unforced errors in his Davis Cup debut, nearly twice as many as the 15 by Kokkinakis.
After a strong hold at love in an opening game that included a 139 mph (224 kph) ace and a trio of service winners, Shelton lost his way completely, losing 12 of his next 16 service points and six games in a row overall. That set ended with Shelton double-faulting when he was cited for a foot fault.
But he broke to open the second set and soon the match was far more competitive.
“Once I got going, I thought I found a really good groove," Shelton said. "I didn’t exactly like how I finished the match at the end. I thought I left a little bit on the table.”
Fritz won nine of his 10 service games against de Minaur and dealt just fine with a quick turnaround after reaching the title match at the ATP Finals on Sunday in Turin, Italy, before losing to Sinner.
Fritz flew to Spain the next day, then practiced Tuesday and Wednesday.
“I’m just really happy,” Fritz said, “with how I held it together.”