Welcome Home: Manchester United Stock Spikes After Signing Superstar Cristiano Ronaldo

Soccer superpower Manchester United MANU has confirmed the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo. Here’s what it means for the team, the stock and sports betting odds.

What Happened: After speculation that Ronaldo wanted to leave Juventus Football Club JVTSF, the soccer star was linked to a move to Manchester City. Ronaldo had been a rumored target of PSG to join Lionel Messi.

Speculation began early Friday that Ronaldo would choose to return to his former home at Manchester United instead. The news didn’t take long to break that United was indeed the destination.

“Welcome home,” Manchester United said in a tweet. “Everyone at the club looks forward to welcoming Cristiano back to Manchester.”

The transfer is awaiting personal terms, visa and medical to finalize, according to a statement from Manchester United.

Related Link: 5 Things You Might Not Know About Soccer Legend Cristiano Ronaldo

Why It’s Important: Ronaldo remains one of the most prolific goal scorers in soccer history.

In 292 games with Manchester United, Ronaldo scored 118 goals. He ranks first all-time with 783 career goals.

Ronaldo ranks second in Ballon d’Or wins and first in nominations, winning the trophy five times and receiving 12 nominations.

A well-known soccer star, Ronaldo could have a huge impact on the success on the field for Manchester United and also off the field. He's the most followed athlete on social media with over 500 million followers across Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Ronaldo has a lifetime deal with Nike Inc NKE.

News of Ronaldo’s signing with Manchester United led to a crash for the manutd.com site, which could signal a surplus of people seeking out the news and also to buy merchandise.

Betting odds have seen little effect on DraftKings Inc DKNG for Manchester United. Juventus is still the favorite to win the Serie A with odds of +110. Manchester United has the fourth best odds to win the English Premier League at +525.

The Champions League odds see PSG the favorite at +300, Manchester City second at +350 and Manchester United sixth at +1000.

MANU Price Action: MANU shares are up 8% to $18.60 at time of publication. Assetdash.com highlights that the news of Ronaldo joining the team added $300 million to the market cap.

Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs
Comments
Loading...
Posted In: NewsPenny StocksSmall CapSportsMoversTrading IdeasGeneralCristiano RonaldoLionel MessiManchester CityPSGsoccer teamsSports Stocks
Benzinga simplifies the market for smarter investing

Trade confidently with insights and alerts from analyst ratings, free reports and breaking news that affects the stocks you care about.

Join Now: Free!