Katia Aveiro, 43, recently posted an Instagram post remembering her family’s modest home in Funchal, where she grew up. This childhood home where Cristiano Ronaldo once lived has now been demolished.

Now, Ronaldo owns a series of expensive real estate, including a 7-story building in his hometown of Funchal and 2 luxury apartments in Lisbon. CR7 also just became the first billionaire in football. 

But when Ronaldo was a child, his life was very different, to the point that the house was inhabited by rats. There was a time when her sister Katia was bitten in the face by a rat and only the intervention of her mother Dolores prevented more serious trouble. 

This was revealed by Katia Aveiro in a touching Instagram post accompanied by a photo of the family home on the outskirts of Funchal, which has now been demolished. Here Katia Aveiro used to live with her mother (who had a stroke in early March and then completely recovered), her two younger brothers Hugo and Cristiano and younger sister Elma. 

“I was born in an old house, my bed was made of bricks and when I was a few months old, I was bitten on the face by a mouse. I’m not ashamed to say that,” said Katia, who currently lives in Brazil with her boyfriend Alexandre Bertolucci and 10-month-old daughter Valentina.

“Thank goodness my mother came at the right time, otherwise I would be much uglier now. I grew up in a poor neighborhood and from a young age I learned to appreciate what I had.”

“My mother taught me to share what we have, the ability to help someone, regardless of social conditions. I helped people without them knowing.”