Cristiano Ronaldo announced Thursday that he will no longer play for Portugal’s national team, closing out a career that stretched across six World Cups, a European Championship title, and the men’s all-time international scoring record.
The 41-year-old forward made the announcement in a lengthy video message posted to social media, addressing the Portuguese public directly.
“To the Portuguese people, the day has come for me to hand back the No. 7 shirt of our national team,” Ronaldo said. “I never felt it belonged to me alone but for 23 years I had the privilege and the responsibility of wearing it, defending it and carrying it with me into stadiums all around the world.”
“Today the time has come to pass it on to the future. It was not an easy decision because some decisions are not made with the mind alone. They are also made with the heart. A journey that began in August 2003 and changed my life forever has come to an end.”
His international career began before Euro 2004 and ends after a falling-out with Portugal coach Jorge Jesus. Ronaldo’s last appearance for the national team came Sept. 24, a 1-0 win over Wales in the Nations League. Jesus left him out of the next match and indicated he had no plans to start him going forward, prompting Ronaldo to leave the team’s training camp.
Jesus later said Ronaldo would be welcome to return and that the decision was his to make. Lionel Messi, Ronaldo’s longtime rival on the international stage, finished his own career with Argentina last month in a widely anticipated farewell match.
The Portuguese soccer federation issued a statement expressing “deep gratitude and immense admiration” for Ronaldo’s years of service.
“Cristiano Ronaldo has raised Portugal’s profile and inspired generations of young people who dream of following in his footsteps; for many of us, he is the greatest player of all time!” the federation said.
The federation said it plans to organize a tribute so fans and the country can once more celebrate Ronaldo’s contributions.
Ronaldo will continue playing club soccer and is expected to finish out his club career this season with Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia. He currently sits at 985 career goals, pursuing a milestone 1,000th, and has scored a record 146 goals in 234 appearances for Portugal.
