Cristiano Ronaldo announced on Thursday, in a video posted on social media, that he will not play for Portugal's national team again. At 41, he closes a 23-year spell that began in 2003, shortly before Euro 2004.
"The day has come for me to hand back to the Portuguese people the No. 7 shirt of our national team," he said in the video, adding that he never felt the shirt belonged to him alone.
The numbers
- 234 appearances for the senior side
- 146 goals — the all-time international scoring record in men's football
- 12 major tournaments: six World Cups and six European Championships
- 3 titles with Portugal: Euro 2016 and the Nations League in 2019 and 2025
His last match was a 1-0 win over Wales on 24 September in the Nations League, according to the Federação Portuguesa de Futebol (Portuguese Football Federation). At this year's World Cup, Portugal went out in the round of 16 to Spain, who went on to win the tournament.
The falling out with Jorge Jesus
The farewell follows a breakdown with coach Jorge Jesus. Ronaldo was left on the bench in a 2-1 win over Norway, did not come on, and left the training camp before the match against Denmark on 1 October. He said the coach had broken his word and that he has not spoken to Jesus since 30 September. Jesus denied there was a crisis and later said the door remained open.
The federation handed the player a 30-day ban and a fine. Ronaldo said he had already written a retirement statement at the time and was talked out of it by the body's president, Pedro Proença.
In its statement this week, the Federação Portuguesa de Futebol expressed "deep gratitude and immense admiration" for the forward, called him the greatest player of all time and said it will organise a tribute so fans can say goodbye. Among those who posted messages were Bruno Fernandes, Diogo Dalot, Pepe, Neymar, Manchester United, Juventus and Sporting.
What continues
The retirement applies only to the national team. Ronaldo stays at Al-Nassr, in Saudi Arabia, where he is contracted until the end of this season, and is chasing his 1,000th career goal — he has reached 985.
With information from Sky Sports, Euronews and the Federação Portuguesa de Futebol.
