Ronaldo Reflects on Portugal's Journey and World Cup Exit

Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo spoke to the press following Portugal's elimination in the Round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup after a 1-0 defeat to Spain at the Dallas stadium.

Regarding the departure of coach Roberto Martinez, Ronaldo said: "I loved working with Roberto Martinez; he is a great person and a great coach. What he did for Portugal was very important and deserves praise."

On his international retirement, he added: "I don’t make decisions in moments of anger. That’s not important now; this was my last World Cup, but now I will have time to think and spend time with my family. I won’t make decisions in a moment of emotion."

He continued: "I am sad to leave the World Cup this way, but as I said yesterday in the press conference, I gave everything; I did my best, and I leave with a clear conscience."

Ronaldo emphasized: "I repeat, I leave with a clear conscience; I gave all I had. Tomorrow will be a new day, and life goes on."

He noted: "I have done everything I can. I won three titles with Portugal, and before Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal had not won any titles; I am happy. The greatest title the national team achieved was in 2016, the European Championship, which for me holds the same value as the World Cup."

He added: "It’s always sad to exit a major tournament. It’s the World Cup. The team was developing and improving. We played a good match, in my opinion. The match was close, but that’s football. We have to get up and keep moving forward. It’s frustrating to exit this way, but I leave with a clear conscience."

He concluded: "Well, it was a very balanced match, and it could have ended in favor of either side in my opinion. Spain had a stroke of luck scoring in the last moments, but that’s football; I think it was a good and competitive match overall."