SHE once went to work in a shop on the bus — and got picked up in a £1.5million Bugatti sports car.
As the girlfriend of footie icon Cristiano Ronaldo, Georgina Rodriguez is one of the most followed women on social media.
Her life in the lap of luxury is the subject of new Netflix documentary I Am Georgina, debuting on Thursday to mark her 28th birthday.
Yet don’t expect a warts-and-all account of her rise from humble beginnings.
Despite her hints at a tough upbringing, the show presents an airbrushed look at the life of the woman in the life of Manchester United’s Ronaldo.
There is no mention of the rape allegations made against him in 2005 and 2009, which were later withdrawn; nor of tensions in her family amid claims from relatives the model has shut them out.
Though she insists, “Nothing in life has come easy”, I Am Georgina is the telly equivalent of her Instagram account — showcasing a serene marriage, beautiful children and lavish spending.
Recalling the early days of their romance, when Ronaldo picked her up from her job as a sales assistant at a Gucci store in Madrid, Georgina says: “I’d get there on the bus and leave in a Bugatti.
“I went from selling luxury items to wearing them on the red carpet. I have millions of followers and I’m the woman of the most-followed man in the world.”
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She is mum to their four-year-old daughter Alana and is pregnant with twins.
The footballer has three other children, whose mothers are not publicly known: 11-year-old Cristiano Jr and twins Mateo and Eva, four.
Georgina teases a rags-to-riches story but the show’s first two episodes barely scratch the glossy surface.
Georgina teases a rags-to-riches story but the show’s first two episodes barely scratch the glossy surface.
Ronaldo was first accused of raping Kathryn Mayorga — who waived her right to anonymity — in a Las Vegas hotel 12 years ago.
He settled out of court, paying her $375,000 in 2009, although the former model and schoolteacher later claimed she had signed a deal under duress.
Last year a judge dismissed her attempt to sue Ronaldo for £56million over leaked documents.
The striker has consistently denied the claims, saying in 2018: “Rape is an abominable crime that goes against everything that I am and believe in.”
Similarly overlooked in the Netflix documentary is Georgina’s uncle Jesus Hernandez, who branded her “evil” for not telling him where his late brother Jorge, her dad, is buried.
Jorge died in 2019.
He said: “I’ve written on Cristiano’s Facebook, ‘You’ve got the most evil woman at your side’ and, ‘If you want to know, contact me, I will tell you’.”
Streering well clear of those difficult topics, the doc instead revels in displays of dizzying extravagance.
Georgina opens the doors to their homes in Turin — where Ronaldo played for three seasons from 2018 with Italian giants Juventus — and Madrid, plus their private jet and £5.5million yacht.
The first time I went to Cristiano’s house, I’d get lost every time I went to the kitchen. It would take me half an hour to get back because I didn’t know the way.
Georgina Rodriquez
She says it took a while to get used to his opulent lifestyle, including the £4.8million pad in Madrid he bought when he signed for Real in a then-world record £80million transfer in 2009.
The mansion, in the super-expensive La Finca residential estate, has indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a gym and a football pitch where Cristiano Jr is seen honing his footie skills.
A glimpse at the showroom-style garage reveals a fleet of supercars including two Rolls-Royces, Ferraris and a Bugatti.
Georgina says wistfully: “The first time I went to Cristiano’s house I’d get lost every time I went to the kitchen for water.
“Sometimes it would take me half an hour to get back from the living room because I didn’t know the way. It was so big. Since I was a kid, I’d been used to living in small apartments.
“After half a year, I got to know where everything was.”
“After half a year, I got to know where everything was.”
Now settled in as the lady of the house, Georgina is seen instructing an interior designer on a makeover to make the decor “more homogeneous”, saying: “Don’t mix patterns with marble, with lights. Don’t get plastic flowers. Don’t get new books.”
Their £40million property empire also includes a mountainside mansion in Turin, with two adjoining villas, which became home when Ronaldo agreed his £100million switch to Juventus.
Filmed before Ronaldo’s return to Manchester United last year, which saw the family relocate to this country, Georgina reveals she dreads the prospect of another move.
She says: “I love living in Turin. Everything is close. If we want snow, we go to the snow.
“If we want a more cosmopolitan day, we go to Milan. If we want sea we go to Monaco.
“Staying in Turin depends on many things but mostly on Cris. I don’t ask for much in that sense because at the end of the day, I’m happy at home.
I went from selling luxury items to wearing them on the red carpet. I have millions of followers and I’m the woman of the most-followed man in the world.
Georgina Rodriquez
“I work from home, I take care of my children and they are super-happy wherever we go because we have the resources to get them into the best schools and the best extra-curricular activities. But I would like to stay a little longer.”
Georgina is seen flying to Paris on the couple’s jet, the interior of which features leather sofas and monogrammed pillows, to visit the studio of designer Jean Paul Gaultier.
There, she delights in trying on dresses for a trip to Cannes.
Proving she has become more than accustomed to the lifestyle, she says: “The jet makes travel easier. If I had to be in an airport for two hours with Cristiano, I’d go insane. I’d rather not travel.”
She hosts a Grand Prix weekend in Monaco on board their 90ft yacht, named CG Mare, inviting her “darlings” — a tight-knit group that includes pals from her Gucci days and big sister Ivana.
The gang were summoned, we learn, with a last-minute text,
“You always have to have your bags ready with my sister,” says Ivana.
“You never know what the next surprise will be. If you blink, you miss out on the adventure.”
Other jaw-dropping moments include Georgina’s chat with a travel agent about their forthcoming summer holiday, when she reels off a list of requirements for their private villa.
These include “many rooms and a private pool, easy access to the dock for a smaller boat and a piece of land to walk with the kids and not have to leave the villa to take them out for a stroll”.
She adds that a gym is not necessary because if there’s a spare room, “we’ll bring the machines”.
Georgina is perhaps most passionate discussing her wardrobe of designer clothes, shoes and bags.
I don’t consider myself a phenomenon but I do consider myself a fortunate woman because I know what it is to have nothing and I know what it is to have everything.
Georgina Rodriquez
She enthuses: “I love Hermes, I love Gucci, I love Prada. It’s so feminine. I love Louis Vuitton. I love Decathlon! I love Nike. I love all brands. I have a very unique style.
“They’ve tried to change my style many times but if I don’t feel like myself, I don’t wear it. I don’t want to go out there insecure.”
Georgina seems to have resisted hiring a nanny and does the school run herself . . . albeit with a security guard driving the car.
She says: “I’m thankful I have the freedom that I don’t have to get up at 7am and get home at 9pm like many mums. I have the economic means that I can stay home.
“I’m aware I have the opportunity to look after the kids myself. They mean everything to me.”
Originally from Argentina, Georgina grew up in the Spanish region of Murcia and always had a “strong maternal instinct”.
Remembering her childhood, she says: “Before going to school, I would play with my little kitchen and the cribs.
“I would leave them ready so when I came back I would take them for a stroll around my minute house. They were well looked-after.”
Ronaldo says the children are his “whole life”, adding: “They are something I always dreamed of — having a big family.
“I’m really, really happy, knowing (Georgina) is the ideal person to give our kids a good upbringing and educate them, love them and care for them.
“With four kids, three of them are basically toddlers and if you don’t have a mother to support you in that way, even if you’re the best dad in the world, I think you end up falling short.”
When it comes to the kids, Georgina is keen to depict their daily life as normal.
I love Hermes, I love Gucci, I love Prada. It’s so feminine. I love Louis Vuitton. I love Decathlon! I love Nike. I love all brands.
Georgina Rodriquez
She says: “We’re like any other family. We have breakfast together, Cris goes to training, I get ready whatever needs to get ready.
“If I have to take care of the house, I’ll do that, or a vacation, a trip, a future career project, my children.
To me, my home is my temple, a place to wind down, I have the peace I need there.
“I feel a sense of family, I’m valued, spoiled and loved. Sometimes I think ‘Man, I’m so happy’.”
She adds: “I don’t consider myself a phenomenon but I do consider myself a fortunate woman because I know what it is to have nothing and I know what it is to have everything.
“When I was little, I used to dream of having a wonderful family, building a home.
“I used to dream of a Prince Charming by my side. And now I have one, with wonderful kids who give me so much love.
“And yes, I can say, ‘Dreams do come true’.”
- Soy Georgina (I Am Georgina) is on Netflix from Thursday Jan 27.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
