Cristiano Ronaldo says 2026 will be his last World Cup

sportsJul 6, 2026731,058

Cristiano Ronaldo confirmed that the 2026 World Cup will be his last, saying "This will be my last World Cup" as Portugal prepared to face Spain in Monday's round of 16 in Arli. The announcement comes as Ronaldo appears at his sixth World Cup, a milestone noted in coverage of his tournament role. Coverage of the run-up to the Spain match has shifted toward assessing Ronaldo's on-field role, with an opinion piece headlined "Time to bench Cristiano Ronaldo as 'last dance' nears?" arguing managers must weigh starting him against Portugal's tactical needs. That debate centers on whether Ronaldo can still help Portugal lift a first World Cup trophy before he ends his World Cup career. The confirmation frames Portugal's short-term selection choices and shapes how media and analysts will evaluate Ronaldo's final World Cup minutes.

Douglas Reyes-Ceron

@dreyesceron.bsky.social

If anyone would like to see Cristiano Ronaldo walk to the locker room after a loss, after not having scored a goal in a knockout stage game yet again, for likely the last time of his World Cup career, here you go!

16045d ago

Douglas Reyes-Ceron27

for the sake of it, here's how he walked out of the tunnel after losing to Morocco in the 2022 World Cup as well

jen ramos-eisen5

I need someone w better editing skills than me to turn this into the Charlie Brown sad walk from Arrested Development

Megan G1

The one time I will willingly watch a video clip of this man

Quoting this

Bob Ciullo7

With the Cowboys star above is waaay too on the nose.

Don’t Go Jason Waterfalls6

Fitting this takes place in Cowboys Stadium

sargent.major 🔴🏆⚫️2

that big-ass Dallas Cowboys star really adds to the overall themes of the piece too tbh

Too Big to Fail

@toobigtofail.bsky.social

So I just now learned that soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo who just retired today is a different player from the soccer player Ronaldo I remember hearing about in the 90's, and personally I think soccer players should have different names.

5545d ago

Too Big to Fail14

For a moment I was like "is this the guy they used to call Ronaldiño as the little Ronaldo?" but apparently that's an entirely different guy named Ronaldo. Like, come on now.

Werewolf Bar Kochba3

The important thing to remember is that soccer is boring as fuck so it doesn’t matter.

Steven Randolph2

Yeah between Portugal and Brazil they had/have so many Ronaldo's that people just started putting nicknames on their unis It's like getting a SAG card, John Smith? Pick a unique name outta this hat buddy

We're Skroob2

The real Ronaldo is why I have always called the younger one Christiano or CR7.

Grizzled Shopkeep1

Add Roman Numerals like Arraiga and Arraiaga II

Torstein Helleve1

Wait till you learn about Juninho

Pop Crave

@popcrave.com

Cristiano Ronaldo has played his final World Cup match after Portugal’s elimination from the tournament.

5445d ago

Quoting this

fiona apple fazendo obra no canil dos cachorros12

madonna: rainha do som cristiano ronaldo: coitado sem dom

plugged and caged at the addison rae concert11

neymar e cristinao ronaldo se aposentando na mesma copa evento abençoado

friendless bottom twink sociopath9

e quando q ele vai pagar pelo crime do estupro q ele cometeu ein

carol2

que susto achei que ele tinha morrido

Chaminda Jayanetti

@cjayanetti.bsky.social

quite like that Cristiano Ronaldo's role these days is a stroppy target man who rarely scores from open play. basically Duncan Ferguson.

4745d ago

Chaminda Jayanetti13

(Duncan Ferguson is the most overrated player of the premier league era imo)

Brent Toderian

@brenttoderian.bsky.social

As he retires from national team play after an exceptional career, Cristiano Ronaldo manages to remind me why, despite his clear talent, I’ve just never been a fan. #WorldCup #Ronaldo

Ronaldo’s comments after Portugal’s 1-0 loss to Spain today – “I’ve won three titles for Portugal. Before Cristiano, Portugal did not win a single title in history. The best title I have won with Portugal is the Euros in 2016. Honestly, for me Euro 2016 is worth like winning a World Cup. Again, I leave with clear conscience and giving my best to Portugal. Tomorrow will be a new day and then life will go on.”

4445d ago

Iain 🇨🇦2

Never trust anyone who refers to themselves in the third person.

Courtney Nguyen

@fortydeucetwits.bsky.social

"This doesn't have to be the last soccer you see for another four years." Yeah no shit man, we will go back to watching the soccer this country knows best. WORLD CUP IN 11 MONTHS FAM.

3545d ago

PBS News

@pbsnews.org

Mikel Merino scored in the first minute of second-half stoppage time, and Spain beat Portugal 1-0 on Monday to end the World Cup career of superstar Cristiano Ronaldo. https://to.pbs.org/3RpSUZn

3145d ago

Mark Lazerus

@marklazerus.bsky.social

That's the first time the World Cup looked like the soccer I'm used to coaching the last five years. We definitely inadvertently ran that exact play in the U8 town league once or thrice.

3245d ago

Mark Copelovitch

@mcopelov.bsky.social

Heroic 🇵🇹 performance playing a man down for 99 minutes

3345d ago

Paul Cohen1

choosing to play a man down when you have one of Europe's serious heavyweight 9s on the bench, I call that chutzpa

The Athletic

@theathletic.com

Is this the end of Cristiano Ronaldo's illustrious international career? The Portuguese star exits the 2026 World Cup with the active men's records in international appearances and goals, including 11 goals in six World Cup appearances.

3245d ago

Noah2

Nigga couldn’t even average 2 goals per showing

deepmir.bsky.social2

He can now go serve that "suspended" FIFA suspension now.

Mark Yeager 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️2

One important thing about securing one’s legacy: knowing when to quit.

ziw52.bsky.social1

None in a knockout game though. Likes an easy target.

El Bandido de Amores1

How many goals without the penalties?

Quoting this

Mitch🦦14

How many in the knockouts??? HOW MANY IN THE KNOCKOUTS???

Fergus McKee5

Ange-ball Vs Ronaldo's hamstrings? Perhaps his club career could be over soon as well?

CJ Coreschi3

"Illustrious international career" Has never scored an open-play goal in a World Cup knockout round. Has half Messi's goal-count in nearly the same number of matches, second-most World Cup games ever played and yet ninth in goals scored. Portugal never reached beyond the QFs with him.

Jonathan Tannenwald

@jtannenwald.bsky.social

FIFA finally issues a statement signed by "the Chairperson of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee" - though without his name printed. It says invoking Article 27 "is not unprecedented, as similar decisions have previously been issued during the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers." As in Cristiano Ronaldo.

2145d ago

Jonathan Tannenwald12

And a shot at UEFA: "For instance, in the majority of top-tier leagues belonging to UEFA-affiliated member associations – the overturning of red cards is a common disciplinary measure, yet this has never raised concerns about crossing any 'red line.'"

Philippe Auclair2

But...but...this is incorrect. Ah well never mind.

Quoting this

Prof Tracey Hill3

Qualifiers were a different situation. Red card not 'overturned' in this case. No other suspension *in the finals* has been put into abeyance. Try harder, fuckers

Michael P. Breen2

A Per Curiam ruling on the shadow docket, as it were

goonlighting

@goonlighting.bsky.social

pulisic should emulate fellow superstar and legend ronaldo: make this his last world cup ever ☺️

2445d ago

Steven Rich

@datab.ae

of note: both Graham Platner and Cristiano Ronaldo are 41

1445d ago

Spike Friedman

@spikefriedman.bsky.social

me watching 41 year old Cristiano Ronaldo try to play football

2045d ago

Dan K

@thereal-dk.bsky.social

That's different (bit also shouldn't have happened). He _was_ banned for next qualifying match, and bans from qualifying have sometimes not all rolled over to the actual world cup. No player since 62 has had a red in the world cup but not led to missing the next match www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...

2145d ago

3 sources

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Cristiano Ronaldo says 2026 will be his last World Cup

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