Cristiano Ronaldo, 41, has been named in Portugal's provisional squad of 27 players plus one for the 2026 World Cup, a selection that sets him up to play in a record sixth tournament. The forward, who holds the men's records for all-time international appearances and goals, was included by coach Roberto Martinez in a list that will be trimmed before the final 26-man deadline.
Martinez, who described Ronaldo as central to the group, said: "He is our strength, our joy," and confirmed the squad list carried a reference to the team’s late player as the symbolic "plus one." The coach added a reminder of the wider work required around a global tournament: "The focus is our group. All of them are focused, they’re prepared for the demands of a World Cup and we just need to manage day by day."
The weight of the call-up is concrete: Ronaldo is one of six players to have played in five World Cups and is set to extend that run to a sixth, joining teammates in warm-up fixtures and the group-stage schedule that begins on June 17. Portugal have friendlies against Chile and Nigeria — the latter set for June 10 at Estádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa in Leiria — before opening the tournament in Houston against DR Congo. Portugal's Group K then meets Uzbekistan in Houston on June 23 and concludes against Colombia in Miami on June 27.
Some members of Martinez’s selection face their own calendar crunch. Vitinha, Joao Neves, Nuno Mendes and Goncalo Ramos were set to play in the Champions League final against Arsenal on May 30, forcing a rapid turnaround between club and country. The provisional list also includes Bruno Fernandes and younger faces such as Pedro Neto, who has been named for his first World Cup after a season in which he made 50 appearances in all competitions and scored ten goals, and who has 23 caps for Portugal to date.
Context to the selection is stark: Martinez’s squad is provisional, and the list comes in the shadow of last July’s death of Diogo Jota in a car crash. Martinez returned to that loss in explaining his choices: "Losing Diogo was an unforgettable and very difficult moment, but the very next day it was up to all of us to fight for Diogo's dream and for the example he always set in our national team." He added, "Diogo Jota's spirit, strength and example are the plus one and will always be the plus one."
Ronaldo’s presence also intersects with off-field developments. He has been playing for Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr since January 2023 and, despite a sending-off in a World Cup qualifier last November, avoided a three-match ban and is eligible for all of Portugal's group games. Ronaldo was among the 26 players Martinez chose for the June 10 friendly against Nigeria in Leiria, underscoring his role in the immediate preparation for the United States-hosted tournament.
Tension in the squad sits in a few places. The provisional format and the requirement to submit a 26-man roster mean one goalkeeper will be omitted before the final deadline to ensure compliance with the tournament limit; that is a concrete personnel decision Martinez must make. Martinez also pushed back against simple narratives about age and form, saying: "In my experience, at a World Cup, a player doesn’t follow the pattern of club form, age-related performance or anything like that," which frames his choice to keep Ronaldo in the mix despite the striker’s veteran status.
For Pedro Neto, the call-up confirms a rapid rise — Euro 2024 and the 2025 Nations League Finals, where Portugal overcame Spain to be champions, are now prelude to his first World Cup. For Ronaldo, the provisional list cements a personal milestone: a sixth World Cup is within reach and the tournament schedule now sets the timetable. The immediate next steps are clear — Martinez must cut one goalkeeper to satisfy the 26-man limit, players in the Champions League final must recover and report, and the friendlies in Leiria and elsewhere will be the last full tests before Portugal meet DR Congo in Houston on June 17. For readers tracking the Portugal World Cup Squad, this selection answers the big question of whether Ronaldo would travel; it also poses the sharper one Martinez will settle in the final roster cut: who goes and who stays when the list becomes official.
For more on the selection and the run-up to the United States-hosted tournament, see Portugal World Cup Squad 2026: Ronaldo picked for record sixth tournament —
