
Cristiano Ronaldo asked for punishment âÂÂwithout mitigationâÂÂ, then fought to cut it
He presented several arguments after Portugal walkout
Inquiry chose to halve, then halve again his punishment
Cristiano Ronaldo successfully fought to reduce his punishment for walking out on a Portugal training camp, after publicly saying his sanction should be imposed âÂÂwithout mitigating circumstancesâÂÂ.
Ronaldo said in a lengthy statement on social media after he left the camp in Denmark last month that he should be punished as the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) saw fit and that his role as captain constituted âÂÂan aggravating factorâÂÂ.
However, during the disciplinary councilâÂÂs inquiry the 41-year-old put forward several arguments for cutting his punishment, including his clean disciplinary record in recent seasons and his services to football.
Ronaldo received a 30-day suspension and â¬255 (ã215) fine, and the document accompanying the ruling reveals he presented three arguments in mitigation: his disciplinary record this season and in the previous three seasons, his services to football including recognition for sporting merit, and his contribution to establishing the facts of the case.
To support these arguments, Ronaldo listed the club titles he has won and his achievements with the national team: the 2016 European Championship and two Nations League titles. His individual awards were also highlighted, including the fact that the Al-Nassr forward has won the Ballon dâÂÂOr five times. Beyond his achievements on the pitch, he mentioned the honours he had received from senior state officials.
The decision-makers accepted RonaldoâÂÂs arguments concerning his achievements and services to the country, using them to halve his suspension and fine. The punishment was then halved again because Ronaldo had accepted responsibility for his actions.
RonaldoâÂÂs suspension will be served in a period during which there are no international matches. It is unclear whether he intends to return to the national team â or whether the coach, Jorge Jesus, will select him again.
The account of events provides a clearer picture of the circumstances surrounding RonaldoâÂÂs departure from the training camp. After head coach Jesus held a press conference in which he reiterated that he was in charge of the team and that no player would influence his selection decisions, Ronaldo requested a vehicle from the FPF and set off for Copenhagen airport.
During the journey, he called the Portuguese federationâÂÂs president, Pedro Proença, and told him he was âÂÂnot in the right frame of mindâ to remain with the team.
âÂÂThe defendant [Ronaldo] did not inform or provide prior justification to the federation or the menâÂÂs national team officials regarding his intention to leave the stadium and the training camp,â the ruling states. It says that between 30 September and 4 October, Ronaldo missed more than 30 team activities, including travel, training sessions and meals.
The federation says that RonaldoâÂÂs promise on social media, after leaving the training camp, to tell his fans âÂÂthe whole truthâ brought further negative attention to the incident: âÂÂGiven his prominence as a public figure on a global scale, the defendant could not have been unaware that his conduct, in the circumstances in which it occurred, would be subject to intense media scrutiny, as indeed it was.âÂÂ
Ronaldo was therefore âÂÂexpected to exercise particular caution in choosing the timing and manner in which he expressed his dissatisfaction with the managerâÂÂs decisions and conductâÂÂ. Instead, the player âÂÂfurther fuelled speculation and public curiosity by posting on Instagram on the very day he left Copenhagen, announcing that, âÂÂin due courseâÂÂ, he would tell âÂÂall Portuguese people the truth about the reasons that led to his departure from the menâÂÂs senior national teamâÂÂ,â the inquiry concluded.
Portugal are scheduled to play Denmark again in their next game on 14 November in Braga.
