Ronaldo says 2026 World Cup will be his last as Portugal advances

Cristiano Ronaldo said the 2026 World Cup in North America will be his last, adding urgency to Portugal’s decision over how long to keep leaning on a 41-year-old captain as the tournament enters the knockout stage. Portugal has already reached the round of 16 and is preparing to face Spain, with Ronaldo’s place at the center of the lineup debate once again.

Roberto Martínez had already signaled that Ronaldo remains central to the plan when he named him in a 27-man Portugal squad in May 2026. Reuters later reported, on June 17, 2026, that Ronaldo would start Portugal’s World Cup opener against the Democratic Republic of Congo in Houston, a sign that Martínez was still willing to build around the veteran even as the tournament moved from group play into higher-stakes matches.

The record book still argues strongly for Ronaldo’s case. He is appearing in a sixth World Cup, matching Lionel Messi for the most by any man, and he became the first player to score in six different World Cups in 2026. Earlier in the tournament, he also became the oldest scorer in a FIFA World Cup knockout match when he converted a penalty against Croatia at 41 years and 147 days. Those milestones sit alongside his achievement at Qatar 2022, when he became the first player to score at five World Cups.

FIFA traces Ronaldo’s World Cup story back to Germany 2006, when he scored from the penalty spot against Iran as Portugal reached its first semi-final in 40 years. That arc now gives his final tournament a different weight: every appearance can be read both as a competitive decision and as the closing chapter of one of football’s longest-running international careers.

For Portugal, the tactical question is sharper than the legacy debate. Starting Ronaldo offers a proven penalty-box threat and a player who has already delivered in six tournaments. But his age, and the fact that this is his final World Cup, force Martínez to balance immediate results against the demands of a knockout run that will punish any lack of movement, pressing, or pace. Portugal’s route against Spain will reveal whether Ronaldo remains a decisive attacking option or whether his value is increasingly symbolic, a captain whose presence still commands the stage even as the team’s structure has to do more of the work.