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Cristiano Ronaldo might finally hang up his soccer cleats for good sooner rather than later. In a new interview, the Portugal superstar, 40, made clear that the 2026 FIFA World Cup will “definitely’ be his last, for example. “I will be 41 years old and I think will be the moment in the big competition,” Ronaldo told CNN on Tuesday, Nov. 11 at the Tourise Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The global sports icon also weighed in on his official retirement from the sport, saying, “I’m enjoying the moment, but when I mean soon, it’s really soon because I gave everything for football.” Ronaldo continued, “I’m in the game for the last 25 years. I did everything. I have many records in the different scenarios in the clubs and also in the national teams. I’m really proud, so let’s enjoy the moment, live the moment.” Ronaldo is the all-time leading goal scorer in international soccer history. He has scored 143 international goals and is the first-ever male player to score at five World Cups, according to CNN. His son Cristiano Ronaldo Jr. plays in the Portugal under-16 club — and his proud father also weighed in on the budding player’s career. “Human beings, we don’t want nobody being better than us,” Ronaldo told CNN. “But in my point, I wish if my kids will be better than me, I’m never going to be jealous of him, trust me.” Last month, the soccer great celebrated his Al Nassr team’s victory over Al Fateh in a Saudi Pro League matchup by taking to social media and summing up the win in five words: “Success is not an accident.”
