[Video] Cristiano Ronaldo Retires From Portugal National Team, Ending 23-Year Career With Record 234 Caps and 146 Goals
Cristiano Ronaldo, 41, announced his retirement from the Portugal national team on Thursday, November 5, in a five-minute video and a farewell letter posted on his social media accounts, ending a 23-year international career. "To the Portuguese people: the day has come for me to hand back the No. 7 shirt of our national team," he wrote. The Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) responded with a statement hailing him as the team's "eternal captain" and pledging to organize a tribute worthy of his career. Reuters and other international outlets have confirmed the announcement.
"Today I finish my walk on the pitch with the national team. I leave with my head held high, with pride in the path I took, and with the awareness that I gave everything I had for Portugal," Ronaldo wrote. "It was not an easy decision... Today, the time has come to pass it on to the future. Portugal will always be in me. Forever." He said he never felt the No. 7 shirt belonged to him alone, but that for 23 years he had the privilege and the responsibility of wearing it, defending it and carrying it into stadiums around the world. The farewell video is set to "O Amor a Portugal" by Portuguese singer Dulce Pontes.
Ronaldo made his Portugal debut in August 2003 and went on to win 234 caps and score 146 goals, both all-time records in men's international football. Captain since 2007, he led Portugal to the Euro 2016 title and two UEFA Nations League crowns, in 2019 and 2025. The World Cup remained the unfinished chapter: at the 2026 tournament, Portugal fell to eventual champions Spain in the round of 16. He is retiring from international football only; his club career continues with Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia, where he has scored nine goals in 12 appearances so far this season.
The farewell follows a public rupture with new head coach Jorge Jesus. During the September-October Nations League window, Ronaldo started against Wales but then spent the entire match against Norway on the bench, warming up for much of the second half without being brought on; he walked straight off at full time without applauding the fans, and on September 30 he abandoned the national team camp in Copenhagen. In a long letter on October 6 he accused Jesus of twice breaking his word, while insisting he was not retiring and remained available for selection. The FPF's disciplinary council then suspended him for 30 days and fined him 255 euros. Less than a month later, the farewell letter has closed the saga.
The announcement lands on the eve of Jesus naming Portugal's squad for the November Nations League fixtures — at home to Denmark in Braga on November 14 and away to Wales in Cardiff on November 17, with Portugal already assured of a place in the quarter-finals. That squad will be the first of the post-Ronaldo era. In its statement, the federation said it "refuses to let this farewell take place without the tribute it deserves" and vowed to organize a homage at which fans and the whole country can applaud and celebrate, once more, the player who gave them so much.
Related: Portugal federation upholds Ronaldo's 30-day ban and 255-euro fine
Source: Portuguese Football Federation
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Photo: 图：C罗2025年9月6日在亚美尼亚 Yerevan 举行的2026年世界杯预选赛葡萄牙对亚美尼亚比赛中庆祝进球。YantsImages，CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates scoring during Portugal's 2026 World Cup qualifier against Armenia in Yerevan on September 6, 2025. YantsImages, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
