After Portugal's 2-1 victory over Croatia in the 1/16 round of the 2026 World Cup, Cristiano Ronaldo directly spoke out about his future in the national team jersey.
Speaking in an interview after the match, the 41-year-old superstar denied that he had decided to retire from the national team after the World Cup, despite the information that appeared before the match started.
Ronaldo said: "My sister said that I would retire after the World Cup? No, I haven't done anything yet and I'm not the type of person who decides everything in a hurry.
The owner of 5 Golden Balls emphasized that he will only make a decision after Portugal's journey at the 2026 World Cup closes.
I will decide my future after the World Cup, not now," Ronaldo affirmed.
Previously, his older sister Katia Aveiro shared with the media that the 2026 World Cup is likely to be Ronaldo's "last dance" in the Portuguese national team jersey. She said that according to what she has grasped, this will be his younger brother's last tournament at the national team level, meaning Ronaldo will not aim for EURO 2028.
These statements quickly sparked many speculations about the striker born in 1985 preparing to close his journey of more than two decades with the Portuguese national team.
However, Ronaldo himself rejected those speculations with the latest statement. This means his future is still uncertain and will only be decided after Portugal completes the campaign at the 2026 World Cup.
In the match against Croatia, Ronaldo scored the equalizer 1-1 from the penalty spot before Goncalo Ramos scored in injury time, helping Portugal win 2-1 to advance to the quarter-finals. This is also Ronaldo's third goal at the 2026 World Cup and his first goal in the knockout round in the history of participating in the biggest football festival on the planet.
With Portugal continuing the championship race, Ronaldo said that all his focus at this time is on the road ahead, instead of questions related to the time of parting ways with the national team.
