Ronaldo received a red card after using a weak point in Portugal's loss to Ireland in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in Europe. The captain of the "European Selecao" was sent off on a sad day of competition by himself and his teammates with the same score of 0-2.
This was Ronaldo's 12th red card in his career and also the first time in the national team jersey. He has previously received three red cards for Man United, six for Real Madrid, and one for Juventus and Al Nassr.
When receiving a direct red card, the player will be suspended for 1-3 matches, depending on the severity of the foul. Ronaldo used a spear to point at defender Dara O'Shea, so CR7's behavior is considered "quite serious", which could result in him being suspended for up to 3 matches (excluding friendlies).
This Sunday, Portugal will have their final match in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in Europe, with Turkey competing. Currently, they are still leading Group F with 10 points after 5 matches but are only 2 points ahead of the second-placed team, Hungary. This means that the "European Selecao" must beat Ukraine to secure a place in the 2026 World Cup. At the very least, the EURO 2016 champion will not have the participation of CR7.
If Portugal have to play in the play-off and Ronaldo is suspended for 3 matches, they will not be able to have the service of CR7. Even if he reached the World Cup, Ronaldo might not have participated in the first matches of the group stage, a very damaging consequence after his uncontrolled behavior early this morning.
CR7 is the top scorer in the history of the Portuguese national team with 143 goals in 226 appearances. This number of goals is also a world record for a male player at the national team level.
Ahead of the FIFA Days series in November, Ronaldo had an interview with journalist Piers Morgan on his personal YouTube channel. The 40-year-old superstar shared that the 2026 World Cup will be the last international tournament of his career. Therefore, right before the tournament, there was a surprise like now, which is beyond CR7's calculation.
Italy has continuously failed to qualify for the World Cup in recent times for countless reasons. Ukraine, despite being a weak opponent, in a limited 90-minute match, anything could have happened to Portugal. The most worrying thing right now is how many matches Ronaldo will be suspended. If the number is only 1 and Portugal wins Armenia this weekend (to the World Cup), everything will immediately cool down.
