Cristiano Ronaldo sets another record, this time off the pitch

Portuguese football legend Cristiano Ronaldo has become the first person in history to gain 200 million followers on Instagram. The Juventus forward thanked his fans after reaching the milestone.

Instagram, a leading social media platform, allows a person to share videos and images on the internet. The social media website's own handle has around 330 million followers. Ronaldo's profile is the second-most followed after that of Instagram itself.

Ronaldo pockets around 48 million euros per year through Instagram. The amount is more than what he earns as a player for the Serie A giants. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner's annual football salary is approximately $34 million. Interestingly, he earns a mind boggling 900,000 euros or $1 million (approximately) for each of the sponsored posts he makes on Instagram.

Ronaldo also happens to be the most liked athlete on Facebook, with around 122.3 million likes on his profile along with 124.4 million followers.

In October 2018, Ronaldo eclipsed American musician and actress Selena Gomez to become the most followed person on Instagram. At that time, Gomez boasted 167 million followers.

The 34-year-old is aiming to win another UEFA Champions League title this season. The Juve star has yet to win the European competition with his new club. So far, he has played three seasons for Juventus and has appeared in 73 matches. He scored 50 goals for them during this span.

As per reports, Brazilian football icon and Paris Saint-Germain striker Neymar is the 10th most followed personality on Instagram, with 132.6 million followers. According to the Week, he earns a whooping £425,000 or $552,300 (approximately) per sponsored Instagram post.

In contrast, Argentinian behemoth Lionel Messi ranks eighth with 141.8 million followers. He was crowned the second-highest earner on the particular social media platform. He earns $23.3million annually from sponsored posts. Last year, Messi won his sixth Ballon d'Or title to surpass Ronaldo.

Singer Ariana Grande is third on the list with 173.1 million followers. She still has a lot to cover before reaching Ronaldo. After CR7, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is the second-highest followed athlete with 170.1 million. However, he doesn't currently compete in wrestling and is often considered to be an athlete/actor hybrid.