A former member of the Brazil national football team, Ronaldo has played 97 international matches, and was part of the Brazilian squads that won the 1994 and 2002 World Cups.

He is the highest goalscorer in the history of the World Cup with 15 goals, having surpassed Gerd Müller's previous record of 14 at the 2006 tournament. Ronaldo has won three FIFA World Player of the Year awards in 1996, 1997, 2002 and is one of two men to have won the award three times, along with former Real Madrid teammate Zinedine Zidane.