Cristiano Ronaldo finally credits SG photographer behind viral World Cup photo

Freelance Singaporean sports photographer Edmund Wong has been credited by football icon Cristiano Ronaldo after the Portuguese captain initially shared one of Wong's FIFA World Cup photographs on Instagram without attribution.

Wong, a FIFA-accredited photographer, captured a series of candid moments during Portugal's 4-0 victory over Uzbekistan in Houston, including an overhead shot of Ronaldo celebrating his first goal of the tournament with his teammates.

The image was later reposted by Ronaldo to his 668 million Instagram followers, where it has since amassed more than nine million likes. However, the initial post did not include a credit to Wong.

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While describing himself as "absolutely honoured" that Ronaldo had chosen to share his work, Wong also raised concerns over the lack of attribution and payment in a series of Instagram Stories.

According to media reports, while expressing his appreciation that Ronaldo had shared the image, Wong said creators deserved to be credited for their work and maintained that professional photography should be properly compensated, even if attribution was the only form of recognition.

He added that even without payment, he would have appreciated being credited for his work.

In a subsequent Instagram Reel, Wong recounted the moment he captured the image, saying he had taken the photo "without thinking Cristiano Ronaldo would actually use it". He also left a pinned comment tagging Ronaldo and requesting to discuss payment and usage terms.

The story has since reached a positive conclusion. In an Instagram Story posted on 26 June, Wong revealed that a member of Ronaldo's team had contacted him and the matter had been resolved, with his Instagram handle now added to the footballer's original post.

"Like I said, from the beginning, it was already an absolute pleasure, absolute honour for him to absolutely like my photo and post it on his own socials," Wong said. "I think this just rounds it all off really nicely and I'm glad things worked out how it did."

He added that the experience had also introduced his work to a wider audience, noting increased traffic to his social channels and a collaborative post with football media platform 433.

The incident also comes as marketers increasingly view the FIFA World Cup as more than just a live sporting event. In an earlier piece with MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, industry leaders said fans are increasingly engaging with the tournament through social media, creators, highlights and online conversations, making it as much a cultural moment as a sporting one.

As audiences move fluidly between television, streaming platforms and social channels, brands are also rethinking how they engage fans beyond the live broadcast, with greater emphasis on creator-led storytelling, short-form content and real-time conversations throughout the tournament.

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