Following a 23 year career with the Portuguese national team, Cristiano Ronaldo has announced his retirement from international play on Thursday. Ronaldo has represented his home country 234 times on the global stage, scoring a record setting 146 goals along the way.
The announcement is believed to be tied to his recent fallout with Portugal’s coach Jorge Jesus, and comes 1 day before Jesus was to name the roster for Portugal’s Nations League game vs. Denmark.
“To the Portuguese people, the day has come to hand back the number seven shirt of the national team that belongs to us all. I never felt it was exclusively mine,” Ronaldo said on Instagram. “But for 23 years I had the privilege and the responsibility of wearing it, defending it and taking it with me to stadiums all over the world. Today the time has come to hand it over to the future.
“It was not an easy decision, because there are decisions that are not made solely with the head; they are also made with the heart.”
His last official game in a Portugal jersey will go down as September 24th in his team’s 1-0 victory over Wales. From there, tensions boiled over after Ronaldo was an unused substitute in his team’s 2-1 victory over Norway on October 4th. This led to the 41 year old walking out on the national team, which resulted in a 30 day suspension from Portugal’s football federation.
“A journey that began in August 2003 and changed my life forever is coming to an end,” Ronaldo said. “When I look back and think of everything I’ve experienced with the national team, I don’t just see matches, goals, records or trophies. I see people. I see immigrants who, for 90 minutes, felt Portugal was a little bit closer.”
“I see millions of Portuguese people whom I’ve never met in person, but who have been part of my life. Because, at the end of the day, football is so much more than just a game. Football is about the people. Throughout my entire career with the national team, I’ve strived to push my limits. I wanted to win, I wanted to be the best, I wanted to make history.”
“I’ve always been hard on myself. I’ve always wanted more; I’ve always believed we could go further. And I gave everything I had for this shirt. There were perfect afternoons and evenings; there were victories I’ll never forget. There were defeats that I still find hard to recall today. I also failed, I also suffered, and there were moments when I wasn’t able to give the Portuguese people what they so desperately wanted. But I never gave up. And above all, I never stopped feeling proud to represent Portugal.”
“Over the years, I’ve learnt some very simple things. Goals come and go, trophies end up in museums, and records are eventually broken. But there is one thing 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 hug someone, forget your worries, and feel nothing but pride in our country, then it was all worth it. Because that’s what being Portuguese is all about. We suffer together, we rise together.”
Ronaldo will continue to play at the club level with Al Nassr in the Saudi league, where he currently is just 15 goals shy of 1,000 for his career. In a bit of symmetry between two legendary careers that have always been intertwined, Ronaldo’s announcement comes less than a month after Lionel Messi played his final international game with Argentina.
For their part, the Portuguese football federation issued a lengthy statement thanking Ronaldo for his contributions.
“It is with a sense of deep gratitude and immense admiration that the Portuguese Football Federation publicly pays tribute to and thanks Cristiano Ronaldo for his absolutely extraordinary career in the service of our country,” the statement said.
“More than just an outstanding athlete, our captain was an inspiring leader, a model of dedication and the ultimate symbol of the spirit of our national team. Throughout a legendary international career, marked by 234 caps and 146 goals scored, the captain carried the nation on his shoulders, broke records and led the team to achievements that will forever be etched in the history of Portuguese football. Every drop of sweat, every decisive goal and every captain’s armband he wore with honor on the pitch reflected his unconditional love for our shirt.”
“His commitment and his legacy extend far beyond the four lines of the pitch…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 is our firm and wholehearted intention to organise, plan, participate in and actively collaborate on what will always be a tribute worthy of Cristiano Ronaldo’s immense career, in which the fans and the country can once again applaud and celebrate the player who has given us so much,” the statement continued. “Let’s go for goal number 1,000!!!”
Photo: Dagur Brynjólfsson. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.