On Thursday, Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo surprised his fans and the football world in general by announcing his retirement from international football with his country following the international break in November, ending an exceptional career that spanned more than 23 years, during which he became the player who played the most international matches and scored the most goals in the history of football.
Ronaldo (41 years old) revealed his decision through a post on his social media accounts, confirming that he will re-hand over the “No. 7” shirt after the end of the next international break.
Ronaldo played 234 matches for the Portuguese national team, during which he scored 146 goals, holding two world records for the number of international appearances and goals.
Ronaldo began his career with the first team in August 2003, and participated in six editions of the World Cup. He also led Portugal to the European Nations Cup in 2016, and the European Nations League twice in 2019 and 2025.
The announcement was surprising, given that Ronaldo had completed his 30-day suspension, paid the fine amounting to 255 euros, and was also included in the preliminary list for the national team in preparation for facing Denmark on November 14, and Wales on the 17th of the same month, which strengthened expectations of his return to the squad after his absence for the last period.
According to the Spanish newspaper AS, the return of the Portuguese star was not completely guaranteed, in light of the continuing tension in his relationship with coach Jorge Jesus, after Ronaldo felt that the latter had not adhered to previous understandings between them, which the player expressed in a letter in which he criticized the way of dealing with the crisis. The president of the Portuguese Football Federation, Pedro Proenca, tried to intervene to contain the dispute and return the player to the national team, but those efforts did not end with the return of the Portuguese captain, who chose to end his international career.
The former Portugal captain has 985 goals so far, making him only 15 goals away from achieving an unprecedented achievement in football, while his Argentine rival, Lionel Messi, continues to chase him with 931 goals, according to a report by the British BBC network.
The Portuguese Football Federation revealed its intention to organize a ceremony in honor of the star Cristiano Ronaldo, after a career spanning 23 years, which witnessed his participation in six editions of the World Cup, leading the European Nations Cup, and breaking the record for national team goals in men’s football.
Ronaldo's last international participation was on September 24, when Portugal beat Wales with an unanswered goal in the European Nations League, before disputes escalated with the coaching staff.
The Portuguese Federation issued a statement in which it expressed its “deep gratitude and great admiration” for what Ronaldo provided for his country, stressing that he contributed to raising Portugal’s status on the world stage and inspired generations of young people who dream of following in his footsteps. Al-Ittihad added: “For many of us, he is the greatest player in history.” He also announced his intention to organize an event in honor of Ronaldo, which will provide the fans and the country with a new opportunity to celebrate a player who has given so much to the national team throughout his career.
Ronaldo's retirement comes weeks after the end of the international career of his historic rival Lionel Messi with Argentina, but the circumstances of farewell differed between the two stars. Messi ended his career with a farewell match last month, while Ronaldo's end came after a dispute with the national team coach and his departure from the camp.
Ronaldo played 234 international matches, during which he scored 146 goals, holding the world record for the number of international goals in men's football, after he began his career with the national team in August 2003.
Despite the end of his international journey, Ronaldo will continue to play at the club level with Al-Nassr Saudi Arabia, amid expectations that he will conclude his professional career at the end of the current season.
The Portuguese star is still chasing the 1000th goal in his football career, after his tally reached 985 goals, including 146 goals for the national team, keeping him 15 goals away from reaching the historic achievement.
This move ends one of the longest international careers in football history, while Portugal prepares to honor its former captain on an occasion whose date has not yet been determined.
French Monaco continued its perfect start in the European Football Conference League, after achieving its third successive victory by defeating its guest, Nordsjælland, of Denmark, with two unanswered goals, on Thursday, in the third round of the league stage.
Mathis Detourbet opened the scoring for Monaco in the 33rd minute, before substitute Mathis Ablin added the second goal in the first minute of added time in the second half, confirming the French team's superiority.
Monaco raised its score to nine points in fourth place, trailing on goal difference behind Lugano of Switzerland, Panathinaikos of Greece and Twente of Netherlands, while Nordsjælland's score froze at two points in twenty-fifth place.
Monaco imposed its advantage for most of the match, possessing 59 percent of the ball, and its players shot nine balls, compared to only three attempts by the Danish team.
The lead goal came after an organized attack during which Monaco players exchanged passes, before Japanese Takumi Minamino passed the ball to Deturbet, who put it into the net in the 33rd minute.
In the second half, the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology canceled two goals for Monaco in the 49th and 52nd minutes, scored by Paris Bruno and Minamino, respectively.
As Nordsjæland rushed in search of an equalizer in the final minutes, Ablin took advantage of the spaces behind the Danish team's defence, and launched a quick counterattack in which he bypassed the defenders, before he was alone in the goal and scored with a low shot to confirm the victory.
Monaco will host Scottish club Hearts in the next round, while Nordsjælland will host Greek team Panathinaikos.
In another match, the Swiss Logano strengthened his position at the top of the standings by defeating the Lithuanian Kauno Zalgiris 3-0, scored by Yannis Seminiani, Ezgian Alioski and Daniel Santos.
Logano raised his score to nine points, ahead of his competitors on goal difference, while Kaono Zalgiris remained at the bottom of the standings without points.
In turn, Denmark's Copenhagen defeated Georgia's Iberia 2-1, thanks to goals from Mohamed Elyounoussi and Vahid Selimovic, while Amiran Dzhania scored the only goal for the Georgian team.
Copenhagen raised its score to seven points in sixth place, while Iberia's score froze at one point in twenty-ninth place.
Romanian University of Craiova also achieved victory over Albanian Ignatia Rogozin with two unanswered goals, scored by Alexandru Cicaldau and Nikoshur Panko.
With this victory, the Romanian team raised its score to seven points in eighth place, while Ignatia remained at two points in twenty-sixth place.
Brighton, England, achieved a valuable victory away from home over Getafe, Spain, with an unanswered goal, on Thursday, in the third round of the league stage in the European Football Conference League competition.
The English team owes its victory to its player Malik Yankobe, who scored the only goal of the match in the 64th minute, giving Brighton three important points in the race to qualify for the knockout rounds.
Brighton raised its score to seven points in fifth place, while Getafe's score froze at one point in thirty-first place.
In another match, Dutch club Twente came from behind against its Cypriot guest, Paphos, to win 3-1, continuing its distinguished results in the competition.
Paphos took the lead with a goal scored by Lele in the 40th minute, before Ruud Nystad equalized for the Dutch team in the 62nd minute.
Sonder Orgaster gave Twente the lead in the 74th minute, before Dauda Weidman settled the confrontation by adding the third goal in the 82nd minute.
Twente raised its score to nine points in third place, while Paphos remained at one point in thirtieth place.
In turn, Panathinakos of Greece defeated its guest, CSKA Sofia of Bulgaria, 2-1, in a confrontation that witnessed excitement and an exchange of goals.
David Calabria opened the scoring for the Greek team in the 41st minute, but Denis Almeida equalized for the visitors four minutes later, ending the first half in a draw.
In the 68th minute, Vicente Taborda scored the winning goal for Panathinakos, giving his team three valuable points.
In Belgium, St. Truiden tied with its guest, Norwegian Brann, 1-1.
The hosts took the lead through Nelson Ishiwatari in the 48th minute, before Alrik Matthiessen equalized for the Norwegian team in the 78th minute.
The two teams raised their score to seven points, with Brann occupying sixth place, while St. Truiden came in tenth place.
The match between Latvia's Riga and Czech Republic's Jablonec also ended in a 1-1 draw, within the matches of the same round.
