Cristiano Ronaldo was 12 years old, living alone in a Sporting Lisbon boarding house, and sometimes he didn’t even have money to eat. Nearby there was a McDonald’s where he and other boys from the academy would go late at night, waiting for it to close. There were Edna, Paula, and a third coworker, who, when there were leftover burgers, would set them aside and give them to them. Without asking questions. Without asking for anything in return.
CR7 told the story this week on “Good Morning Britain”, in a conversation with Piers Morgan: “I remember there was a McDonald’s nearby where we asked for the leftover burgers. A lady named Edna and two other girls always gave us some. I want to invite them to dinner in Turin or Lisbon and repay what they did for me. I never forgot it.”
As soon as the story aired, Paula Leça spoke with the Portuguese radio station Renascenca and confirmed every detail: the manager who gave them permission, the boys who always arrived after 11 at night, and one detail that still makes her laugh today. “Ronaldo was the shyest of them all”, she recalled. Her son didn’t believe her when she told him. Her husband did, because sometimes he would pick her up at closing time and see them waiting. Now Paula says that if Cristiano invites her to dinner, she’ll go without hesitation. 🍔
