Off the field: Cristiano Ronaldo is the new Save the Children ambassador

By Jenny Lei Ravelo @JennyLeiRavelo04 January 2013

Christiano Ronaldo, superstar footballer, is now an ambassador for Save the Children. Photo by: Ludovic PÃ©ro / CC BY

Real Madrid’s star football player will be taking his skills off the field to strike out against global child hunger and malnutrition.

Cristiano Ronaldo is Save the Children U.K.’s new global artist ambassador. Under the new title, he will fight child hunger and obesity by promoting healthy eating habits and physical activity.

“As a dad, I know it is important to give my two-year-old son a healthy life, right from the start, and I want to give all kids that same chance,” Ronaldo said in a news release.

This is not the first time Ronaldo has collaborated with Save the Children. In 2011, the multi-awarded football star was the organization’s ambassador for its EVERYONE New Born and Child Survival Campaign.

Ronaldo joins an illustrious and fast-growing group of sports celebrities who have taken up similar roles, including tennis player Anna Kournikova, who is one of several global ambassadors for PSI, the global health group, and David Beckham, the British footballer, who helps to promote UNICEF’s work.

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About the author

Jenny Lei Ravelo@JennyLeiRavelo

Jenny Lei Ravelo is a Devex senior reporter based in Manila. Since 2011, she has covered a wide range of development and humanitarian aid issues, from leadership and policy changes at DfID to the logistical and security impediments faced by international and local aid responders in disaster-prone and conflict-affected countries in Africa and Asia. Her interests include global health and the analysis of aid challenges and trends in sub-Saharan Africa.