Cristiano Ronaldo is turning his back on the Portuguese national team after 234 international appearances. The international press is describing this as ‘the end of a golden era in Portugal’ and bidding farewell to a footballer who has ‘changed the history of a national team forever’.
PORTUGAL
O Jogo: “For 23 years, Cristiano Ronaldo was far more than just the captain of the national team. He was Portugal’s central figure, the face of a generation and a player whose status towered above the team’s hierarchy in many respects.”
SPAIN
Marca: “There are footballers who define an era, and others who change the history of a national team forever. Cristiano Ronaldo belongs to the latter category.”
Sport: “The bombshell has dropped.”
Mundo Deportivo: “It is a bittersweet ending, as it follows his withdrawal during the last international break and his conflict with the new national team manager, Jorge Jesus. Yet his legacy with the Selecao is legendary.”
FRANCE
L’Equipe: “The curtain falls on a legend. A new chapter begins for Portuguese football.”
Le Figaro: “2003 to 2026. 146 goals in 234 matches. And an unforgettable entry in the history of Portuguese football. Cristiano Ronaldo, five-time Ballon d’Or winner, has brought his international career to a close. It marks the end of a magnificent story. And a golden era in Portugal. For the ages.”
ITALY
La Stampa: “It seemed as though it couldn’t end like this. (…) At the age of 41, a chapter and, at the same time, an era comes to an end, just one month after Leo Messi’s final match in the Argentina shirt: the football of the 2000s belongs entirely to them.”
Gazzetta dello Sport: “CR7 brings his legendary international career to a close with a video on social media. It is the end of an era.”
NETHERLANDS
De Telegraaf: “Throughout his legendary international career, marked by 234 international appearances and 146 goals, the captain carried the nation on his shoulders, broke records and led the team to moments that will go down in the history of national football forever.”
USA
The Athletic: “More than anything else, Cristiano Ronaldo has raised the bar for what Portuguese football can achieve. Twenty-three years after his debut, his legacy can scarcely be overestimated.”