Hundreds of curious onlookers gathered outside Funchal Cathedral on Saturday amid rumours that Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez were about to marry in Madeira.
The wedding taking place inside, however, belonged to a Madeiran couple living in France who had returned to their island of birth to celebrate their union.
Throughout the morning and early afternoon, crowds gathered near the Cathedral in the hope of seeing the football star or his partner. Restricted access to the building during the religious ceremony only added to the speculation.
The rumours had gained momentum after the British newspaper The Sun named Funchal Cathedral as a possible venue for Ronaldo and Georgina’s wedding, with the Savoy Palace reportedly being considered for the reception and accommodation of guests.
Neither Ronaldo nor Georgina had confirmed that a wedding was planned for Saturday. Nevertheless, the report was enough to draw hundreds of people to the Cathedral, many carrying mobile phones and hoping to capture a photograph of the famous couple or one of their celebrity guests.
Instead, dozens of cameras were trained on the arrival of the real bride, Nicole, and her wedding guests.
Among those waiting for her were Francisco Abreu and Diogo Agrela, who found themselves unexpectedly surrounded by cameras.
“We feel famous,” they joked, adding: “I find it impressive that these people think Ronaldo was going to get married today without security.”
They said the unusual scenes would “certainly go down in history.”
Children and adults crowded around the Cathedral entrance, watching each arriving car in the hope that Ronaldo or Georgina might step out. For a few moments, every new arrival appeared to revive the rumour, until it became clear that there would be no international stars, Hollywood guest list or celebrity wedding.
There were simply two Madeirans, now living in France, who had chosen to marry in the place where they were born.
Although some observers treated the misunderstanding as light-hearted, it placed an ordinary couple’s private celebration at the centre of an unwanted media spectacle. Their arrivals were scrutinised, their guests photographed and their wedding temporarily overshadowed by a rumour concerning people who were not there.
Whatever the origin of the story, it amounted to a rather cruel joke on the bride and groom, who deserved to be the focus of their own wedding day rather than mistaken for supporting players in an imagined celebrity event.
A Ronaldo wedding in Madeira would undoubtedly carry enormous symbolic significance because of the footballer’s close connection to the Region. But Saturday’s wedding was also deeply Madeiran and no less meaningful to those involved.
It simply belonged to a different couple, and a day that should have been theirs.
Samantha Gannon
info at madeira-weekly.com
Photo: JM archive
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