13 fun facts about Sergio Ramos

Sergio Ramos was the most expensive Spanish teenager in history at the time of his transfer to Real Madrid from Sevilla in 2005. The transfer fee was reported to be €27 million, which was a record-breaking amount for a Spanish teenager.

As a child, Ramos played up front and was nicknamed ‘Bernd Schuster’ after the great German goal scorer by the friends he played with on the grass outside his apartment block. He’d go on to play in defence throughout his career, at right-back and center-back, but has maintained his brilliant goalscoring ability. Coincidentally, he was even coached by Schuster at Real Madrid between 2007 and 2008.

Ramos has a horse named Yucatan de Ramos, which he acquired in 2016. The horse is a grey stallion and is known for its agility and speed. Ramos is an avid horse enthusiast and has been known to participate in equestrian events and competitions. Yucatan won a world championship at the 2018 International PRE Horse Fair, recognising it as the finest pure-bred Spanish horse in the world.

Ramos is Spain's most-capped footballer of all time. He made his debut for the Spanish national team in 2005 and went on to earn 180 caps over the course of his career. During that time, he helped Spain win the UEFA European Championship twice (in 2008 and 2012) and the FIFA World Cup once (in 2010). His 180 caps for Spain surpassed the previous record held by Iker Casillas.

In 2013, Ramos earned his 100th international cap for Spain and became the youngest European player to reach that milestone. It came against Finland during a 2014 World Cup qualifier match where he scored a goal to secure a 1-1 draw.

Ramos has expressed admiration for bullfighting and has been seen attending such events in the past. He has also been photographed wearing traditional bullfighting costumes, including the "traje de luces" (suit of lights), which is worn by bullfighters during corridas.

Ramos is Spain’s all-time record appearance holder (180) and has scored 21 goals for his country, a mightily impressive tally for a defender. Bizarrely enough, though, he’s never scored for Spain at a major tournament. Each of his 21 strikes has come in qualification rounds, in friendlies, or the UEFA Nations League. Beyond penalty shootouts, he’s never scored at a World Cup, European Championship, or even the Confederations Cup.

Ramos has received the most red cards in the history of La Liga, Spain's top professional football league. He had been sent off 20 times in La Liga matches throughout his career. Overall he has received 28 red cards thus far.

Despite being a defender, Ramos is ranked among Spain's top 10 highest goalscorers. He is jointly ranked ninth with Alfredo Di Stefano with 23 international goals.

Ramos has four Champions League titles to his name, winning the tournament in 2014, 2016, 2017 and 2018. He may be one of the all-time greats of the competition, but it’s easy to forget that he didn’t reach the quarter-final until age 25. He never played in the Champions League with Sevilla, then his first few years at Real Madrid coincided with a barren spell for the capital city club in which they were consistently knocked out in the first knock-out phase. Finally, in 2010/11, after the arrival of Jose Mourinho, Ramos made it to his first quarter-final against Tottenham Hotspur. He’s certainly overcome that initial disappointment as the years have gone on.

Ramos has a tattoo of every time he has won the Champions League on his leg. He won four titles at Real Madrid (2013/14, 2015/16, 2016/17, 2017/18).

Ramos is married to television personality and journalist Pilar Rubio. The couple married on June 15, 2019, in a star-studded ceremony at the famous Seville cathedral in Spain. The wedding was attended by many of Ramos' current and former teammates, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Luka Modric, and David Beckham. Ramos and Rubio have four children together: Sergio Jr., Marco, Alejandro, and Maximo Adriano.

In September 2021, Amazon Prime Video released a documentary series called "El Corazón de Sergio Ramos" ("The Heart of Sergio Ramos") that followed his life and career. The series consisted of eight episodes and featured interviews with Ramos, his family, and his teammates and footage of his training sessions, matches, and personal life. The series gave viewers a behind-the-scenes look at Ramos' journey from his childhood in Seville to becoming one of the most successful footballers of his generation. It also explored his interests outside of football, including his love for music and family.