Cristiano Ronaldo has revealed that the 2026 World Cup will be his last outing on the global stage with the Portuguese national team, as he looks to mark the tournament with a bang in North America
Cristiano Ronaldo has confirmed that he is playing in his last World Cup with Portugal. The 41-year-old is well into the twilight years of his career, with many fans speculating as to whether he would attempt to make 2030’s edition of global football’s most prestigious competition.
However, the Al Nassr striker has now confirmed that 2026 will be his final outing on the world stage for his nation. Speaking in a press conference on Sunday – looking ahead to Portugal’s round of 16 match against Spain – Ronaldo explained: “I want to enjoy it as much as possible, because it will be my last World Cup, yes. But I hope that tomorrow won’t be my last game in the World Cup.”
It comes as a dark day for football enthusiasts worldwide, who will have enjoyed watching Ronaldo represent his nation since his debut in 2003. Since then, he has gone on to rack up 146 goals in 232 appearances for Portugal – the most prolific striker in the history of the international game.
Despite criticism from some following a slow start to the tournament, Ronaldo shattered a long-standing record last month when he became the first man to score in six different World Cup tournaments. The all-time great bagged a brace against Uzbekistan as Portugal ran out 5-0 winners in the Group K encounter.
He also reached the 10-goal mark in World Cup matches, surpassing the late Eusebio’s national record of nine which he secured back in 1966. At 41 years and 138 days old, Ronaldo also made his way into second place in terms of the oldest players to find the back of the net in the competition – bested only by Cameroon’s Roger Milla, who was 42 years and 39 days old at the time of his last World Cup goal.
Portugal are currently gearing up for a round of 16 clash with Spain come Monday, July 6 in Dallas, Texas. The nation has never managed to make it to the final of the tournament thus far, their best attempt coming in the form of a third-place finish back in 1966.
On that occasion, they were bested by eventual tournament winners, England, but managed to beat the then Soviet Union 2-1 in a third-place decider at Wembley.
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