Cristiano Ronaldo has done what Cristiano Ronaldo does best: made everything about him, and somehow made it work. During an appearance at the Tourise Summit in Riyadh on November 11, 2025, the Portuguese forward confirmed that the 2026 FIFA World Cup will be his final major international tournament. He also became the first player in football history to score in six different World Cup editions.
The man will be 41 years old when the tournament kicks off across the United States, Canada, and Mexico next summer.
Six World Cups, one record book
Ronaldo has now scored in World Cup tournaments spanning 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, and 2026. No other player in the history of the sport has managed that feat across six editions.
He noted during his Riyadh remarks that he plans to continue playing at the club level for “one or two years” beyond the World Cup before considering full retirement. So this isn’t quite the final curtain call for his overall career, but it is the last time he’ll represent Portugal on the biggest stage in football.
