Cristiano Ronaldo confirms 2026 World Cup will be his last for Portugal

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. Ronaldo’s best effort with his nation, meanwhile, landed in Germany in 2006.

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While he could only manage one goal during that instalment – during a 2-0 win over Iran in the group stages – Portugal made it all the way to the semi-finals where they were heartbreakingly omitted by France 1-0.

They also suffered a 3-1 loss to tournament hosts Germany in the third-place play-off match in Stuttgart, finishing fourth overall for their endeavours. Despite winning practically everything else that the world of club and international football has to offer, the coveted World Cup trophy is the one thing left on Ronaldo’s proverbial checklist.

Whether he will finally get his hands on that honour later this month remains to be seen, with Portugal up against stiff competition should they hope to go all the way. A win against Spain will see the nation advance to the quarter-finals to take on either tournament co-hosts USA or Belgium, dependent on the outcome of their clash on Tuesday.

A successful route to the final then depends on Portugal beating either France or Morocco in the semis. And awaiting on the other side of the draw, each competing for their own place in the final, are Brazil, Norway, Mexico, England, Argentina, Egypt, Switzerland and Colombia.

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