Cristiano Ronaldo announced on Thursday that he is retiring from the Portugal national team, ending a 23-year international career. The 41-year-old forward made the announcement in a video posted to Instagram, according to BBC.
Ronaldo leaves as the most prolific scorer in the history of men's international football, with 146 goals, and holds the world record for appearances for a national team. He debuted for Portugal in August 2003.
"For the Portuguese people, the day has come to give back the number seven shirt of our national team," Ronaldo said in the video, as reported by BBC. He said the shirt never felt like his alone, but that for 23 years he had the privilege and the responsibility of wearing it, defending it and carrying it to stadiums around the world.
Why it matters
Ronaldo's numbers place him at the top of the international game by a wide margin, and his exit closes the most productive national-team career on record. It also removes Portugal's long-standing focal point less than a year after the team's most recent Nations League triumph, and it comes weeks after his rival Lionel Messi stepped away from Argentina — a near-simultaneous end to two careers that defined an era of the sport.
A record-setting career in numbers
BBC reports that Ronaldo scored 146 goals in 243 appearances for Portugal. Both figures are world records: no other men's player has scored as many goals or played as many matches for a national side. He is also the most-capped player in the history of Portugal's men's team.
His international honours include the 2016 European Championship title and two Nations League crowns. He appeared at six World Cups, with his deepest run coming in 2006 in Germany, when Portugal reached the semi-finals.
In his farewell message, Ronaldo framed the decision as one that went beyond calculation. "Today the time has come to pass it on to the future," he said, according to BBC. "It has not been an easy decision, because some decisions are not made only with the mind, but also with the heart." He described a journey that began in August 2003 and, in his words, changed his life forever.
A separate farewell video, reported by El Mundo, also addressed his family, with Ronaldo thanking them for understanding his absences.
The weeks before the announcement
The retirement follows a turbulent period. BBC reports that last month Ronaldo left a Portugal training camp after being told he would not start a Nations League match against Denmark. Spanish outlet MARCA has reported on an internal dispute involving coach Jorge Jesus that it links to the retirement; that account has not been confirmed by the Portuguese federation and is not addressed in Ronaldo's own statement.
Portugal is scheduled to name its squad on Friday for November Nations League matches against Denmark at home and Wales away — the first selection of the post-Ronaldo era.
The Portuguese Football Federation said the same day that it would not let the farewell pass without a proper tribute. In a statement reported by BBC, the federation said it has a strong desire to organise, plan and take an active part in what it called a fitting homage to Ronaldo's career, giving fans and the country a chance to applaud him once more.
Messi's parallel exit
Ronaldo's announcement lands about a month after Messi retired from the Argentina national team in October. BBC reports that Messi, Ronaldo's longstanding rival, played 207 matches and scored 125 goals for Argentina, winning the 2022 World Cup and two Copa América titles.
The two exits, so close together, leave international football without either of the two players who have dominated its scoring charts for two decades.
What to watch next: Portugal's squad announcement on Friday will give the first indication of how the team plans to replace Ronaldo, and the federation's promised tribute will set the terms for how Portuguese football says goodbye to its most decorated player.
