Cristiano Ronaldo follows David Beckham as Armani underwear model

Having previously filled David Beckham's shirt at Manchester United and his boots at Real Madrid, Cristiano Ronaldo is now copying his mentor's underwear at Armani.

Treasure chest: Cristiano Ronaldo boosts his considerable earnings by becoming the new face – and body – of Armani jeans and underwear

Making it a hat-trick of moves which mirror those of Beckham's career, the 24-year-old Portuguese winger bared his chest as he became the new face of Giorgio Armani, modelling jeans and underwear.

The 34-year-old Beckham, nicknamed Golden Balls, made history for the brand in 2008 when an advert with him posing in a pair of tiny white Emporio Armani briefs was plastered across the front of a New York department store.

Clearly a fan of football, or at least the way its players' athletic physiques look in Armani-branded smalls, the Italian fashion house has long had the support of the beautiful game, counting names such as Luis Figo, Thierry Henry and David James as ambassadors for the brand.