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Cristiano Ronaldo walked out on Portugal’s training camp in Copenhagen on Wednesday, giving no indication on if or when he might return to the national team.
The move came days after Ronaldo watched from the bench as Portugal defeated Norway 2-1, with his replacement, Gonçalo Ramos, scoring the game-winning goal. And it came hours after Portugal coach Jorge Jesus announced that Ronaldo would not start the next day’s game against Denmark.
Here’s what we know.
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An all-time great
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Ronaldo has more international goals (146), victories (141) and appearances (234) than any other men’s soccer player. He said during this summer’s World Cup, his sixth, that it would be his last.
But Ronaldo also has indicated he wants to keep playing in pursuit of his 1,000th career goal. He currently stands at 979 goals, accounting for his international play as well as professionally with Manchester United, Real Madrid, Juventus and, currently, Al-Nassr.
Last season, Ronaldo and Al-Nassr won the Saudi Pro League title with Jesus as their coach. Jesus departed after the season to take the national team job.
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What happened in the days before Ronaldo’s decision to leave?
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Portugal kicked off its defense of its 2024-25 Nations League title with a 1-0 win over Wales on Sept. 24. Ronaldo started that game but was substituted in the 67th minute. Although he didn’t start against Norway, Ronaldo was sent to warm up during the second half and spent some 30 minutes doing so.
Jesus said Wednesday in a news conference that he had told Ronaldo that he’d get some playing time against Norway but changed his mind as the game unfolded.
“I can promise whatever I want; I’m the coach,” Jesus said. “No player will ever make a decision for me.”
Jesus did admit, however, that “any player” would be upset about warming up for so long and not getting to play.
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Ronaldo’s announcement
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In the same news conference, Jesus said he did not expect to start Ronaldo against Denmark.
“I don’t know what’s going to happen in the game,” Jesus said. “If we need him to play, he’ll play. If not, he won’t.”
This time, the player did make the decision for the coach.
“Following the national team coach’s news conference, and after a conversation with the president of the Portuguese football federation, I decided to leave the national team’s training camp,” Ronaldo posted on social media hours after Jesus spoke.
“In due time, I will tell all the Portuguese about the reasons that motivated my departure from the national team, which I always dedicated myself to. Now it’s time to wish good luck to Portugal and all my teammates, without exception.”
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Now what?
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Spanish newspaper Marca reports that Jesus and Portuguese Football Federation president Pedro Proenca followed Ronaldo to Copenhagen airport but failed to convince him to stay. Portuguese media reported that Portugal Prime Minister Luís Montenegro also became involved in the situation.
So far, Portugal seems to be doing fine without Ronaldo, with Ramos scoring again Thursday during a 4-2 win over Denmark. The team plays Norway again on Sunday in Porto, Portugal.
Although Ronaldo’s future with Portugal remains in question, he is expected to play in Al-Nassr’s next game, Oct. 9, against Al-Diriyah in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
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