Cristiano Ronaldo and his partner Georgina Rodriguez have hired a new chief bodyguard and sacked previous members of his security team amid concerns over their safety in Saudi Arabia, it has been reported.
The Al-Nassr super star, who lives in Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh with Georgina and his five children, felt compelled to ramp up security after receiving a series of alarming threats on social media, which reportedly prompted police intervention.
According to Malaysian newspaper NST, the couple have managed to live a relatively quiet and peaceful life since Ronaldo’s move to Al-Nassr in 2023, enjoying walks and outings with their children in Riyadh.
But distressing messages sent to the Portuguese icon and Georgina on social media have reportedly left the family on edge, prompting Ronaldo to take action.
The newspaper claims Georgina, in particular, is eager to limit her children’s exposure drastically on social media, having previously shown glimpses of her and Ronaldo’s family on their Instagram pages.
Despite initial speculation that this was a personal choice, the decision is believed to be part of a larger security strategy to prevent their children from being targeted by the worrying threats and messages, sources close to NST have alleged.
The former Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus star has now named security expert Claudio Miguel Vaz as his new chief bodyguard, according to Spanish outlet Marca.
Vaz, who has made a name for himself on social media after chalking up over 12,000 followers on Instagram, specialises in the private sector and has experience working in problematic neighbourhoods.
With parliamentary training, he first built his reputation protecting several music artists within troubled areas of Portugal, including rapper NGA.
Moving into football, Vaz went on work with the likes of Rafael Leao and Gelson Martins, who have each racked up multiple caps for the Portuguese national team.
Marca also claims that the star’s decision to hire Vaz and dismiss previous security personnel has not been well received by many of Ronaldo’s inner circle.
It is alleged there are concerns over the bodyguard’s ‘intimidating and aggressive’ style, which differs hugely to Ronaldo’s previous security team.
Those close to the Al-Nassr forward reportedly fear that Vaz’s approach does not match up to his image and lifestyle, with the security chief having already gone viral for actions described as aggressive.
During Georgina’s last trip to Paris to attend Fashion Week, the bodyguard was tasked with boycotting the photographs as she exited her vehicle.
He used a bright flashlight to stun the camera operators in the hope of preventing them from taking pictures — and the approach led to plenty of criticism on social media.
Footage of the incident was uploaded by Today Venezuela on Instagram last month with the caption: ‘The criticised gesture of Georgina Rodriguez’s bodyguards using a flashlight in front of the cameras.’
The post sparked outrage as several Spanish-speaking fans commented to criticise the actions in the video.
‘How ridiculous for God’s sake!! Not even CR has as much show as she does,’ one of the comments written by an Instagram user read, with two thumbs-down emojis.
