Ronaldo, 41, Quits Portugal Weeks After Walking Out on Jorge Jesus

• Cristiano Ronaldo, 41, has retired from international football after 234 caps and a world record 146 goals for Portugal, per Daily Mail Sport.
• He announced it in a five-minute video on social media, saying he is handing back the number 7 shirt.
• The decision follows his row with coach Jorge Jesus, after he left Portugal’s camp by private jet when Jesus kept him on the bench against Norway.

A 23-Year Goodbye That Never Mentions Jorge Jesus

Cristiano Ronaldo has handed back the number 7 shirt. On Thursday the 41-year-old announced that his Portugal career is over, ending 23 years that began with a debut at 18 in August 2003 and finished with 234 caps, a world record 146 goals and the 2016 European Championship. He delivered the news in a five-minute video on his social media accounts. It arrives weeks after he walked out of the national team camp following a row with Jesus, and the statement does not mention the coach once.

The Row That Came Before the Goodbye

Ronaldo’s last appearance for Portugal was a 1-0 Nations League win over Wales in September, when he played 67 minutes. Jesus left him on the bench for the next match against Norway, and Ronaldo, who had warmed up, never came on. He skipped three training sessions and left the Portugal camp for the last two matches of the break, flying to Spain by private jet.

In a 1,996-word statement accusing Jesus of broken promises, Ronaldo said the coach had promised to apologise to the Portuguese people and to his teammates for not bringing him on. He claimed he had been guaranteed 30 minutes against Norway after the Portuguese FA persuaded him not to retire following the World Cup.

Jesus conceded it was a mistake to make Ronaldo warm up, but he gave a different account of events:

“The match in Norway was not part of the plan I drew up for him. However, I felt that he had managed to recover physically from the first match and I warned him that I might have to use him. Cristiano agreed.”

The Portuguese FA fined £215 and banned Ronaldo for a month, but the ban was backdated, which left him free for Portugal’s coming fixtures. Jesus later said Ronaldo would be welcome back and the decision was up to him.

The Shirt, the Heart and the Hard Days

The farewell is a long thank you with no word about the row. Ronaldo opens with the shirt and the choice to give it up:

“To the people of Portugal, the day has come to return the number 7 jersey of our national team. I never felt it was exclusively mine. But for 23 years, I had the privilege and the responsibility to wear it, to defend it, and to take it with me to stadiums all over the world.”

“Today has come the moment to hand it over to the future. It was not an easy decision, because some decisions are not made just with the head, they are also made with the heart.”

He then goes back to August 2003 and what he saw in the stands:

“A journey comes to an end that began in August 2003 and changed my life forever. When I look back and think about everything I experienced in the national team, I do not just see games, goals, records, or trophies. I see people. I see immigrants who, for 90 minutes, felt Portugal a little closer.”

“I see millions of Portuguese people that I never met personally, but who were part of my life. Because at the end of everything, football is much greater than a game. Football is people. Throughout my career in the national team, I sought to surpass my limits. I wanted to win, I wanted to be the best, I wanted to make history.”

He describes how hard he pushed himself, and the days that hurt:

“I was always demanding of myself. I always wanted more, I always believed we could go further. And I gave everything I had for this jersey. There were perfect afternoons and nights, there were victories I will never forget.”

“There were defeats that even today I find hard to remember. I also failed, I also suffered, there were also moments when I was not able to give the Portuguese people what they so desired. But I never gave up. And above all, I never stopped feeling proud to represent Portugal.”

He lists what lasts:

“Throughout these years, I learned very simple things. Goals pass, trophies stay in museums, records end up being broken. But there is something that time can never erase: the place we occupy in people’s hearts.”

What He Told Teammates, Family and Fans

Ronaldo turns from the pitch to the people around him:

“If I ever made you happy, if ever a goal of mine made you hug someone, forget a problem, or simply feel proud of our country, then it was all worth it. Because being Portuguese is also that. We suffer together, we get up together.”

“We believe again. Portugal will always need youngsters who dream of it, players who never give up, new generations who believe it is possible to reach where no one has reached. Because a country that continues to create new heroes is a country that never stops believing in itself.”

He thanks his teammates, the staff and his family:

“To my national team teammates, I want to leave a special word. Thank you for every run, for every hug, for every argument, for every silence before entering the pitch. For every victory we celebrated together and for every defeat that made us stronger. I had the privilege of being your captain, but no captain walks alone. And you are part of my history. To all the coaches, directors, doctors, physiotherapists, kit men, staff, and so many people who worked with me over these years, my thank you.”

“Many of you never appeared in these photographs. But without you, none of those photographs would have been possible. To my family, thank you for sharing this dream with me. Thank you for understanding the absences, the sacrifices, and the moments when the national team had to occupy a space that also belonged to you.”

He closes on the national anthem and what the shirt will always mean:

“If I got this far, it was because we were always hand in hand. And to the Portuguese, to all Portuguese people scattered around the world, I want to tell you one last thing. There is an image I will always carry with me: the moment the national anthem begins. I look around, I see my teammates, I see the stands, I see children, mothers, fathers, and grandfathers, I see Portuguese people who came from so far just to be there.”

“And during those minutes, we stop being different. There are no clubs, there are no colors, there are no classes, there are no professions, there are no opinions. There is only one passion: Portugal.”

“That is a feeling I will carry with me for the rest of my life. Today, my journey on the pitch with the national team ends. I leave with my head held high, proud of the path I walked and with the awareness that I gave everything I had for Portugal.”

“But I will never stop being one of you. I will continue to suffer, to cheer, and to celebrate every victory of Portugal. I spent my life working to be the best player in the world. Today I realize that the greatest victory was having deserved to represent the best country in the world.”

“Thank you for these 23 years. Thank you for believing in me. Thank you for allowing me to live a dream that began when I was just a boy in Madeira, chasing a ball. The number seven jersey stays, the pride of having worn it will be mine forever. Portugal will always be in me. Farewell always, Cristiano Ronaldo.”

A Record Career With No World Cup Final

Ronaldo played in six World Cups, a record he shares with Lionel Messi, and in six European Championships, two Nations League finals and a Confederations Cup. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner lifted the European Championship in 2016, after an injury in the final left him barking instructions to his teammates from the touchline. A World Cup final never came. His best runs were the semi-final in 2006 and the quarter-final in 2022, and he left this summer’s tournament in tears after a 1-0 defeat by Spain in the last 16.

What Happens Next

The Portuguese FA released a statement saying it felt “deep gratitude and immense admiration” for his service, and added:

“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!”

It intends to organise a tribute to Ronaldo “in which the fans and the country can one more time applaud and celebrate a player who has given us so much”.

Ronaldo considered retiring after the World Cup and says the federation talked him out of it. Portugal now play Denmark and Wales in the Nations League later this month without him. Ronaldo keeps playing for Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia, is expected to finish his club career at the end of this season, and sits on 985 career goals in pursuit of his 1,000th.