Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo has announced his retirement from international football. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner confirmed his decision through a video shared on social media.
Ronaldo led Portugal to Euro 2016 glory and signed off as international football’s all-time leading goalscorer and most-capped player, with 146 goals in 234 appearances.
The 41-year-old said that he would ‘hand back the number 7 shirt’.
“To the Portuguese people. The day has come for me to hand back the number 7 shirt of our national team. 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,” Ronaldo said in the video posted on social media.
The 41-year-old was a pillar of Portugal for more than two decades, helping the team win the Euro 2016 title and two UEFA Nations League crowns. He represented his country in six World Cups, with his last campaign ending in a 1-0 defeat to Spain in the Round of 16. Ronaldo also holds the distinction of being the only player to score in six different editions of the tournament. However, despite his remarkable individual record and longevity on the international stage, the one prize that continued to elude him was the World Cup.
The Portuguese Football Federation announced a special tribute to honour Ronaldo’s international career.
“The Portuguese Football Federation refuses to let this farewell take place without due tribute. It is our firm and immense desire to organise, plan, participate and actively collaborate in what will be a fitting tribute to Cristiano Ronaldo’s immense career, in which fans and the country can applaud and celebrate, once again, the player who has given us so much,” it said in a statement
Reflecting on a career, Ronaldo admitted that calling time on his international journey was not an easy decision, with the Portuguese great saying it was time to pass the baton to the next generation.
“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,” he said further.
Ronaldo said his international career was about much more than goals, records and trophies. The football icon spoke about the bond he built with Portuguese fans across the world, the pressure he put on himself to keep pushing boundaries and the highs and lows he experienced while representing his country.
“When I look back at everything I experienced with the national team, I don’t just see matches, goals, records or trophies. I see people, Portuguese people living abroad, who, for 90 minutes, felt a little closer to home. I see millions of Portuguese people I have never met but who have become part of my life. Because at the end of the day, football is so much bigger than a game. Football is about people.
Throughout my entire career with the national team. I always pushed myself beyond limits. I wanted to win. I wanted to be better. I wanted to make history. I always demanded the most of myself. I always wanted more. I always believed we could go further. And I gave everything I had for this shirt. There were perfect afternoons and nights. There were victories I will never forget. There were defeats that still hurt to remember,” he added.
“I made mistakes, I suffered”
Ronaldo also talked about the difficult moments of his international career.
“I made mistakes. I suffered. There were also moments when I couldn’t give the Portuguese people what they so desperately wanted. But I never gave up. And above all, I never stopped feeling wanting to represent Portugal. Over the years, I learned a few very simple things: Goals fade, trophies end up in museums. Records are eventually broken. But there is something that time can never erase. The place we hold in people’s hearts. If I ever made you happy, if one of my goals ever made you embrace someone, forget a worry, or feel very proud of our country, then it was all worth it,” Ronaldo said.
Recently, he had a falling out with national coach Jorge Jesus after refusing to play in a Nations League match and leaving the team camp. The Portuguese captain was handed a 30-day suspension for leaving the camp, which he accepted.
