Counterfeit Card Alert: 2002-03 Panini Mega Craques #137 Cristiano Ronaldo

Several red flags stood out and helped identify this rare rookie card as a counterfeit.

Posted on: 9/12/2025

Few players in soccer history have had the longevity and impact on the game that Portuguese legend Cristiano Ronaldo has had in his 20-plus-year career, which is still ongoing with no end in sight. As one of the most decorated players ever, CR7 has won every major individual and team honor possible, except a World Cup trophy with Portugal. Few players can match Ronaldo's accomplishments since he became a star in the mid-2000s.

Throughout his iconic career, he has won five Ballon d'Or awards, a record three UEFA Men's Player of the Year Awards and four European Golden Shoes. Ronaldo is the sole player to score 100 goals or more for four different clubs. In total, he has scored more than 900 official senior career goals during his combined club and international careers, which makes him the all-time top goal scorer in professional soccer.

Ronaldo has a passionate worldwide fanbase and, therefore, there is a large market of dedicated collectors. Many of the superstar's cards are quite valuable, with some reaching six figures. One of his most valuable cards is the 2002-03 Panini Mega Craques #137 Cristiano Ronaldo rookie card, which was the first card issued by a major brand during his debut pro season with Portuguese club Sporting Lisbon.

Ronaldo's legendary career and enormous popularity off the pitch (he is the most-followed athlete on social media, with more than 950 million followers across all major platforms) has driven up the value for many of his collectibles, especially cards from the earliest years of his career. That is why counterfeiters have pinpointed this particular rookie card as a target.

Recently, a purported 2002-03 Panini Mega Craques #137 Cristiano Ronaldo rookie card was submitted for certification and grading, which in Gem Mint 10 condition can be worth six figures. However, CGC Cards experts quickly noticed several red flags that aided in detecting the card as a counterfeit.

A few of the most obvious red flags when comparing a genuine version of this card to a counterfeit are the colors, stock and clarity. The fake 2002-03 Panini Mega Craques #137 has darker shades of orange that almost look red around the portrait of Ronaldo's face on the back of the card. His skin tone is also noticeably redder on the counterfeit issue as well, making it clear that the ink used on the fake does not match that of an authentic copy.

When taking a closer look at the logos on the front and back of the card, color differences and pixelation are obvious. When zooming in on the circular red and green logo at the bottom left on the back on an authentic card, you can see slight pixelation. However, the ink on the counterfeit copy bleeds and creates less defined edges, text and a harder-to-see outline of a soccer player within the logo.

The fake copy has a very washed-out look and is simply not as crisp compared to a genuine example. This is also evident when zooming in on the shadow of the logo. Authentic copies will have a noticeable pixelated honeycomb pattern that creates the black shadow effect, whereas the fake does not and instead appears muddied.

Moving further down the back side of the card is the Panini logo and card text on a white background. As is the case with many fakes from this era of soccer cards, the counterfeits can be considerably thicker and less pliable compared to genuine copies. The coloring of the white background is more of an off-white coloring on the fake copy and the textures of the card stock are noticeably different.

As for the Panini logo itself, we see more of the same issues. The colors do not match an authentic example, the borders of the logo are less defined and pixelation is prominent. The logo again looks washed-out compared to the authentic version, as the ink is clearly bleeding over into the off-white background of the counterfeit copy.

These red flags on the fake card helped CGC's card experts determine that it does not match an authentic 2002-03 Panini Mega Craques #137 Cristiano Ronaldo. Education is the most important tool when collecting cards. The more collectors know about the printing and manufacturing process of cards, the fewer mistakes will be made when buying cards. This example also highlights the importance of certification for any high-value card.

CGC authenticates, grades and encapsulates authentic examples of cards, making the hobby a safer place for collectors, traders and sellers. To do this, CGC Cards uses world-class expertise, advanced technology, innovation and operational excellence to provide sports card collectors and dealers with accurate and consistent certification services. CGC backs these determinations with the CGC Guarantee, which adds significant confidence, liquidity and value to the hobby. To learn more about CGC's industry-leading services, visit CGCcards.com.


An authentic 2002-03 Panini Mega Craques #137 Cristiano Ronaldo graded CGC 6.5.


Front and back views of an authentic 2002-03 Panini Mega Craques #137 Cristiano Ronaldo rookie card.


Back views of an authentic and counterfeit 2002-03 Panini Mega Craques #137 Cristiano Ronaldo rookie card.


Close-up back views of an authentic and counterfeit 2002-03 Panini Mega Craques #137 Cristiano Ronaldo rookie card.