Cristiano Ronaldo joins Garena Free Fire as playable character

Portuguese footballer Cristiano Ronaldo is the latest celebrity to become a playable character in Garena Free Fire.

The developers of the popular mobile battle royale title have revealed that he will be the central figure in Operation Chrono, an upcoming in-game event.

Ronaldo is more involved with Free Fire than first appears, as he will also serve as a global brand ambassador. Financial terms of the agreement have not been disclosed.

The striker will come to life in-game as the character Chrono, who is set in a “futuristic slum universe.” More details around his inclusion are set to be announced in the coming days.

Operation Chrono is the latest in a long line of in-game events conducted by Garena to reward players with new, themed items. The event kicks off on December 7.

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“It’s a great feeling having not only a character in Free Fire modelled after me, but also having the whole universe within the game changing along with it,” said Ronaldo. “The Garena team has worked into the game tons of new features and elements for Operation Chrono. I hope Free Fire players all over the world are just as excited as I am!”

This isn’t the first instance of Garena introducing celebrities in Free Fire. The likes of American DJ KSHMR, Indonesian actor Joe Taslim, Brazilian DJ Alok, and Indian actor Hrithik Roshan have all been successful in-game integrations.

Garena appears to be including celebrities from different countries and regions to introduce Free Fire to new markets and Ronaldo is just the latest example of this. Not only is he a household name in Portugal, he has major influence on a global scale.

“This is a really significant partnership for Free Fire,” said Harold Teo, a producer at Garena. “Cristiano Ronaldo is a role model for many of us, and being able to collaborate with him and present him to hundreds of millions of people around the world is truly exciting.”