Cristiano Ronaldo Sends Message to Real Madrid on Club's 122nd Birthday

Real Madrid celebrated a big birthday this week.

The club was founded on March 6 in 1902, meaning that it was 122 years old on Wednesday.

A club statement issued to mark the milestone read: "Real Madrid celebrates 122 years of existence.

"On 6 March 1902, the first Board of Directors of the Madrid Foot Ball Club was officially elected. This marked the beginning of the greatest club in the world.

"122 years later, Real Madrid is a benchmark in world sport with its 25 European Cups (14 in football and 11 in basketball) and holds the honor of being named by FIFA as the Best Club of the 20th Century."

Many of the greatest players in the history of football have played for Real Madrid.

The most famous is Cristiano Ronaldo, who holds the record for being the leading scorer in the club's long and rich history.

Ronaldo netted 450 goals in 438 appearances for Madrid between 2009 and 2018.

The Portuguese forward won 15 team trophies with Madrid, including four UEFA Champions League titles.

Ronaldo - who now plays for Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia - sent his former club a message on Wednesday.

Alongside a photo of himself holding the Champions League trophy after the 2018 final, Ronaldo wrote on social media: "Congratulations for these 122 years of history, Madridista family! Hala Madrid!"

In addition to being Madrid's outright leading scorer, Ronaldo also holds the record for the most goals scored in a single season for the club.

Ronaldo netted 61 times in the 2014/15 campaign.

He also passed the 50-goal mark in 2010/11 (53 goals), 2011/12 (60 goals), 2012/13 (55 goals), 2013/14 (51 goals), and 2015/16 (51 goals).

No other Madrid player has ever scored more than 47 goals in a season.

Cristiano Ronaldo pictured playing for Real Madrid in 2018

IMAGO/DeFodi