Hardcore football fans are extremely familiar with the words ‘Viva Ronaldo!’ as well as the chants that surround it. To put it simply, Viva Ronaldo meaning stands for ‘Long live Ronaldo!’
Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the biggest and most popular footballers on the planet. Regarded as one of the best of this generation along with Lionel Messi, Ronaldo has hordes of fans across all corners of the world.
Many of his fans tend to worship him and as a result, several songs and chants have come up in his honour. These songs are sung and chanted by loyal fans during football matches and clips of them being recorded in stadiums often go viral on social media.
The ‘Viva Ronaldo’ chant is by far the most popular of them all that concerns Cristiano Ronaldo. Made popular by Manchester United fans for the first time during his very first stint with the club under Sir Alex Ferguson, it was also adopted by Real Madrid and Juventus fans quite often when the Portuguese superstar played for those clubs.
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So what does Viva Ronaldo mean and what are the complete lyrics to the chant? Let’s discuss:
Viva Ronaldo meaning and full lyrics of chant
There is no deep or complicated meaning behind the term ‘Viva Ronaldo’ and the accompanying chants. It is mostly sung by Manchester United fans and is mostly an expression of joy at the sight of watching Ronaldo play for them in the stadium.
The term ‘Viva Ronaldo!’ translates from Portuguese as ‘Long live Ronaldo!’, with the word ‘viva’ commonly used in praise of a particular individual, thing or idea.
The lyrics to the entire chant are as follows:
“Viva Ronaldo!
Viva Ronaldo!
Running down the wing,
Hear United sing,
Viva Ronaldo!”
In the next line after the ‘Viva Ronaldo!’ chant, United fans sing about Ronaldo ‘running down the wing’ and this is no doubt inspired by the Portugal captain’s style in his formative years when he was a tricky winger.
While it may remain a convenient line in the song due to rhyming reasons, it is now something of a throwback rather than a reflection of reality, but United fans will no doubt be creative with it.
Finally, the song concludes with a self-referential lyric in which supporters tell the world to ‘Hear United sing: Viva Ronaldo!’ – thus allowing them to launch into another rendition.
As mentioned before, the Viva Ronaldo chant originated during Cristiano Ronaldo’s first stint with United in between 2003 and 2008 and was often heard at the Old Trafford and even in away stadiums where travelling Man Utd supporters sang his songs.
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Although it was heard occasionally in the following years, it saw a resurgence in 2021 with Ronaldo returning to Manchester United in the late stage of his career. Fans welcomed him in his official debut for the second time with the club at the Old Trafford with the ‘Viva Ronaldo’ chants.
Despite the fact that things have gone extremely sour between Ronaldo and the club in recent times as evident from his recent interview with Piers Morgan, the Viva Ronaldo chant is a reminder of how fruitful that relationship used to be.
FAQs
How many Premier League titles has Cristiano Ronaldo won with Manchester United?
Cristiano Ronaldo has won three Premier League titles with Manchester United, in 2006-07, 2007-08, and 2008-09.
Is Cristiano Ronaldo the captain of Manchester United?
No, Cristiano Ronaldo is not the captain of Manchester United. Harry Maguire is the captain of the Red Devils instead.
