For a long time, many fans have been worried about Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo's next career arrangement. After all, at the age of 39, he is likely to make some unacceptable decisions in the near future, such as withdrawing from the national team or choosing to retire. But judging from Ronaldo's recent performances, he should not have the idea of retiring yet. The player has already joined up with the first team of Riyadh Victory in Spain and will prepare for the new season.
In addition to this, there is another piece of news that excites fans. According to Spain media Marca, Ronaldo has officially told people around him that he hopes to participate in the 2026 US-Canada-Mexico World Cup as a starter. For the Portugal veteran, his dream of hitting the World Cup is still not over. He hopes to make another attempt at the Hercules Cup in two years' time. It is not difficult to guess this from his previous actions, as Ronaldo and Riyadh Victory have renewed their contracts for another two years.
In other words, Ronaldo will play in Riyadh until 2026. The main reason why he chose to play at this point in time is to ensure his form through competition at club level in order to participate in the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico at the end of the season. For a professional player like Cristiano Ronaldo, if you want to participate in the national team competition, you must usually play games to ensure your condition. Only by systematically following the first team for training can you maintain your physical function in a good state. And the club will play until 2026, when Ronaldo can still play well in the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico, which is the main reason for his contract renewal with Riyadh Victory.
Of course, some fans have speculated before that Ronaldo may be going to complete a father-son story like James in the future. Playing for a team with Mini Ro, in short, there are different opinions. But Ronaldo's biggest goal should be to stay in shape to play in the US-Canada-Mexico World Cup, which has been confirmed by a number of European media outlets recently. It can be seen that Ronaldo still has ambitions.
To some extent, Ronaldo's participation in the US-Canada-Mexico World Cup is also beneficial. Why? First of all, although he was 41 years old at the time, he was definitely not in the same shape as he is now. But just by playing he will be a multi-record holder, and Ronaldo has played in five World Cups before. The United States, Canada and Mexico will play again in the World Cup, which is the sixth time, which is the first person in history. For the Portugal star, he has become the first man to participate in the European Championships, and if he can reach a new record in the next World Cup, it will help him cement his place in history.
In addition, the current Portugal team, although it has a lot of outstanding young players, does not seem to have elected a new leader. Two years later, Cristiano Ronaldo can still stabilize the dressing room as the top and central player, as the team's coach Martinez also talked about in an interview. Ronaldo's totemic role for the national team has not disappeared, so he is still a good choice to participate in the World Cup. Of course, there are problems. That is, will Ronaldo play as a starter in the next World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico? For a star like Ronaldo, who has a strong sense of competitiveness and self-esteem, it is not realistic for the coach to put him on the bench. His personality does not allow himself to compare the player table on the field. But two years later, he will be 41 years old after all, and it is difficult to say at what level of physical condition and technical level will remain at that time.
In case the quality is already clearly inferior to the players on the field, but because of his historical status, he is still allowed to start, which is not good news for Portugal. In other words, Ronaldo's participation in the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico two years later will face an important conflict, that is, the historical position and the choice of actual combat angle. In the end, does the manager prefer Ronaldo's leadership role, or does he arrange the starting line from the perspective of hard power? You are welcome to discuss in the comment section.