Cristiano Ronaldo has always kept his family close, but he may need their support more than ever this week – as he denies allegations he raped a model in a Las Vegas hotel room.
The Juventus star has been publicly supported by his mother, Delores, and his girlfriend, Georgina, since the allegations surfaced… although it’s his older sister who is usually known for being the protective one, and has taken to Instagram asking for “more justice”.
Ronaldo, 33, has three older siblings to lean on: his 43-year-old brother Hugo, and his sisters Elma, 39, and Lilianna Catia- who publicly goes by the name Katia Aveiro.
Katia often publicly supports him, after unlucky matches or unfortunate results, and since the rape allegations she has taken to Instagram to share a portrait of her family including Ronaldo.
A line in her caption translates to: “If anyone wants me offer something please, justice offered to those who are not entitled to allow the evil of the human being to destroy a good life, and make a chain of love, for my family in general, for love, for real women and for a world best.”
She added a hashtag seemingly declaring her support for her little brother and commented: “more love, more justice, more God, please”, while referring to “CR7” – Cristiano’s nickname from fans.
While Hugo and Elma are more reserved, it was always Ronaldo and 41-year-old Katia who longed for the limelight, with Katia having already made a name for herself as a singer.
She may only be famous in Britain through her connection to Ronaldo, but Katia boasts her own fan base in Europe – as well as 800,000 Instagram followers.
The glamorous singer has appeared on Portuguese reality TV, was part of a failed Eurovision attempt a few years ago, and often makes headlines with her relentless support for her brother on the pitch.
But while there’s no doubt that the pair are close, it’s also fair to say that they’ve had their share of ups and downs.
Ronaldo reportedly once flew into a rage after finding out Katia had romped with lover, poker player Claudio Coelho, in his bed.
Claudio made the claims back in 2016 on reality TV show Casa Dos Segredos – House Of Secrets – describing how he’d dated the footballer’s sister for six months in 2013.
He claimed they slept together in the star’s bed when she took him to his luxury house in the Peneda-Geres National Park in northern Portugal.
He said: “It is normal for Cristiano not to like other people occupying his personal space, I understand him fully.
“Katia and I were visiting the Geres area, and spent the weekend at Ronaldo’s house.
“That was where we slept together for the first time.”
Other than being known for being Ronaldo’s older sibling, Katia – mum to two boys – initially became known in Portugal after starring in 2014’s edition of the Survivors TV series, something that was said to have also infuriated Cristiano.
After speaking about their romp, Katia’s ex Coelho also claimed: “It is not the first time she and Ronaldo have fallen out. “While we were together he was angry with her for going on a reality TV show in Spain.”