Cristiano Ronaldo is expected to call time on his Portugal career after the World Cup, according to his sister.
Katia Aveiro said Portugal supporters should be prepared to “say goodbye” to the 41-year-old forward, describing the tournament across the United States, Canada and Mexico as his “last dance” with the national team.
Her comments came just hours before Portugal were due to face Croatia in Toronto, with a place in the World Cup last 16 at stake.
“From the information I have, they can say goodbye,” Aveiro told Sport TV outside Toronto Stadium.
“Not today, but I believe this is the farewell. I’m talking about the national team. From a reliable source, it’s the ‘last dance’, the World Cup.”
Ronaldo was named in Portugal’s starting XI for the match against Croatia, earning his 232nd international cap. He remains the leading goalscorer in men’s international football, having scored 145 times for his country.
Cristiano Ronaldo is expected to retire from international football after the World Cup
The claim was made by his sister, Katia Aveiro, ahead of Portugal’s match against Croatia
His impending exit from the Portuguese national team will not come as a surprise. Ronaldo will be 43 by the time of the Euros in 2028 and 45 when his nation co-hosts the next World Cup with Spain and Morocco.
The Al-Nassr star has endured a mixed tournament in north America, scoring twice against Uzbekistan after a disappointing performance in a 1-1 draw with DR Congo in Portugal’s opening match.
The laboured display against the African side sparked claims of a ‘civil war’ in the Portugal dressing room.
It followed accusations aimed at Ronaldo’s team-mates from his zealous fanbase – including from Aveiro – alleging a plot to edge the ageing forward out of the game.
Aveiro liked an Instagram post attacking Bruno Fernandes after the DR Congo draw, which sparked claims of tension within the Portugal camp.
But Ronaldo responded with two goals against Uzbekistan to become the first player to score at six World Cups. He then declared ‘I’m back’ before abruptly leaving a post-match interview after being asked a question about Lionel Messi.
‘Just so you don’t forget, just so you don’t forget,’ he said of his message to the cameras.
‘I knew it. God helps those who work hard. It was a difficult, dark week, it felt like I was already retired from football, but I held on as I always do because I believe more in hard work than in football. It was difficult, I have to confess, but we’re back.
‘Very happy, but for me the most important thing is the work the team did, the confidence we had,’ he said about his historic moment.
‘We took a lot of hits during the week, we knew that would happen. The team worked very well, we improved a lot. There are evils that come for good, as they say.
Ronaldo opened his account by scoring twice against Uzbekistan, making him the first man to score in six World Cups
‘Speaking for myself, it’s always nice to break records, but my goal is to help the national team achieve its objectives. In this part, it was to get through the qualifying round, with four points I think we’ve already done it.’
Ronaldo’s first for his country came 20 years ago in Germany, when he scored against Iran in Frankfurt.
He added another in 2010 against North Korea, and a third against Ghana in Brazil four years later. Four more followed in Russia in 2018 – a hat-trick against Spain in the opening game and one more against Morocco.
He then became the first player to score in five editions of the tournament when he scored the only goal of the game against Ghana at Qatar 2022 – a record since matched by his great rival Lionel Messi at this tournament.
But Ronaldo is now out on his own again with goals in six tournaments – the perfect riposte to those who felt he was a negative influence on the team after failing to register a shot on target in the opener against DR Congo.
The former Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus forward is also making history against Croatia as the first player aged 41 to feature in a World Cup knockout match.
