The little boy who ran onto the pitch during a Euro 2024 match to get a selfie with Portugal superstar Cristiano Ronaldo said he fulfilled a dream while not so amused UEFA announced tighter security to prevent such incidents in the future.
The 10-year-old ran onto the Dortmund pitch midway through the second half of Portugal's 3-0 victory over Turkey with a mobile phone in his hand, reached superstar Ronaldo in the centre circle, and a smiling Ronaldo bent down for the selfie with the boy.
"I made my dream come true," the boy, who plays for a youth team in the German city of Kassel, told the Bild paper. "Now I have a photo with Cristiano Ronaldo. That will go on a t-shirt and into my room."
He said he had announced his plan to friends before the match but that no one believed him. He added he managed to sneak away from his father by saying he was going to the toilet.
The boy escaped sanctions, with the father saying: "Uefa probably turned a blind eye because he's so small."
But with four other adult people also running onto the field during and after the match, the ruling body announced that security would be tightened for upcoming matches to prevent such incidents.
It said offenders face tournament stadium bans and criminal charges for trespassing.
