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Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr are reportedly set to receive an invitation to play the 2024-25 UEFA Champions League.
The Champions League has had exclusively UEFA-affliated clubs competiting since its inception three decades ago. However, it's now set to extend an invitation to Saudi Pro League side Al-Nassr for next year's edition, considering the popularity of the club in Europe.
That's thanks in large part due to the presence of Cristiano Ronaldo - the all-time Champions League top scorer with 140 goals - who joined the club in December as a free agent.
One of the best players to have graced the beautiful game, the 38-year-old Ronaldo continues to age like fine wine, as he has made a strong start to the season.
The Portugal captain has struck 16 times and laid out nine assists in 17 games across competitions this season. That includes league-leading tallies of 13 goals and seven assists as Al-Alami trail leaders Al-Hilal by four points after 13 games.
UEFA now wants to tap into the Saudi Arabian club and Cristiano Ronaldo's popularity by planning to extend them an invitation for the 2024-25 season. As reported by Alharbi:
"The European Union intends to extend an invitation to Al Nassr to participate in the 2024 UEFA Champions League, being one of the three most famous clubs in football and because Al Nassr has great and great popularity on the European continent."
UEFA are yet to announce anything on the reported development, though.
How has Al-Nassr superstar Cristiano Ronaldo fared in the UEFA Champions League?
Al-Nassr captain Cristiano Ronaldo has a sparkling record in the UEFA Champions League. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner has a record tallies of 140 goals and 48 assists in 183 games across competitions for three different sides.
Ronaldo made most of those goal contributions (105 goals, 31 assists) and appearances (101) for Real Madrid - with whom he won four titles. His other title came with Manchester United in 2008, the year he won his first Ballon d'Or title.
Among many records and milestones in European club football's blue riband event, Ronaldo is the first player to win the competition five times. He's also the first to score for two winning teams in the Champions League final.
Ronaldo's 17 goals in the 2013-14 edition for Real Madrid is the most by any player in competition history. His eight hat-tricks in the tournament is joint-level with Lionel Messi, but three of them came in one season, which he shares alone.
