Cristiano Ronaldo Says 2026 World Cup Will Be His Last, Talks Timeline for Retirement

Legendary striker Cristiano Ronaldo insisted Tuesday that the 2026 World Cup will be his final one as a player.

Speaking to CNN's Becky Anderson (h/t CNN.com's Michelle Velez and Wayne Sterling), the Portuguese superstar said next year's World Cup will "definitely" be his last one.

The 40-year-old veteran added, "I will be 41 years old and I think will be the moment in the big competition."

On top of that, Ronaldo provided some insight regarding when he plans to retire from soccer completely, saying, "I'm enjoying the moment, but when I mean soon, it's really soon because I gave everything for football."

Ronaldo, who currently plays professionally for Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr, has accomplished almost every accolade possible in the sport of soccer.

He is the sport's all-time leading goal scorer with over 950 career goals, and that includes 143 goals for Portugal, which represents the most international goals ever by an individual player.

Ronaldo is also a five-time winner of the Ballon d'Or and a five-time UEFA Champions League winner, plus he won three English Premier League titles with Manchester United, two La Liga titles with Real Madrid and two Serie A titles with Juventus.

Internationally, Ronaldo won the UEFA Nations League twice and the UEFA European Championship once with Portugal, but a World Cup title is the one thing that continues to elude him.

Ronaldo played in five World Cups in 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018 and 2022, and he is the first male player to have scored a goal at five different World Cups.

Despite that, Portugal has not finished better than fourth place at the World Cup during Ronaldo's tenure, and the 2022 World Cup marked the first time Portugal made it as far as the quarterfinals since 2006.

The 2022 World Cup also represented Argentina's first World Cup title since 1986, and the first Lionel Messi's illustrious career.

Messi is the player who Ronaldo is most often compared with, so it would be fitting if Ronaldo finds a way to end his World Cup career triumphantly.

The 2026 World Cup will be hosted jointly by the United States, Mexico and Canada, beginning on June 11, 2026, and it will feature the largest field in World Cup history with 48 teams vying to be world champion.