Nov 5 (Reuters) – Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo announced on Thursday that he was retiring from international football.
Following are facts about Ronaldo’s playing career.
Born February 5, 1985 in Funchal, Madeira, Portugal.
SPORTING CP
• Joined Sporting’s academy in 1997 after spells with Andorinha and Nacional.
• Made his senior debut in 2002 and scored five goals in 31 appearances before joining Manchester United in 2003.
MANCHESTER UNITED
• Signed for Manchester United in August 2003 as an 18-year-old.
• Won three consecutive Premier League titles from 2006-07 to 2008-09, one FA Cup, two League Cups, the 2007-08 Champions League and the 2008 FIFA Club World Cup.
• Scored 42 goals in all competitions in the 2007-08 season as United completed the Premier League and Champions League double.
• Won the Ballon d’Or in 2008, becoming Manchester United’s fourth recipient of the award and the first since George Best in 1968.
• Joined Real Madrid in 2009 in what was then a world-record transfer, ending a six-year spell at Manchester United.
• Returned to Old Trafford for a second spell in 2021 before leaving by mutual agreement in 2022.
• Finished his United career with 145 goals in 346 appearances across two spells.
REAL MADRID
• Became Real Madrid’s all-time top scorer with 451 goals in 438 competitive appearances after joining the club in 2009.
• Won two LaLiga titles, two Copa del Rey trophies, two Spanish Super Cups, four Champions League titles, three UEFA Super Cups and three FIFA Club World Cups.
• Helped Real become the first team to win three consecutive Champions League titles in the modern era from 2016-18.
• Won four Ballon d’Ors during his nine-year spell in Madrid.
JUVENTUS
• Joined Juventus in 2018.
• Won successive Serie A titles in 2018-19 and 2019-20, one Coppa Italia and two Italian Super Cups.
• Was Serie A top scorer in 2020-21 with 29 league goals.
• Scored 101 goals in 134 appearances for Juve.
AL NASSR
• Joined Saudi Pro League side Al Nassr in January 2023.
• Captained Al Nassr to the 2023 Arab Club Champions Cup title, scoring twice in the final against Al Hilal.
• Finished as Saudi Pro League top scorer in consecutive seasons and remains one of the league’s leading attractions into his 40s.
PORTUGAL
• Made his senior debut against Kazakhstan in August 2003.
• Scored his first international goal at Euro 2004 and helped Portugal reach the final, where they lost to Greece.
• Captained Portugal from 2008 and became the country’s all-time leading scorer and most-capped player.
• Led Portugal to their first major international title at Euro 2016.
• Won the Nations League in 2019 and 2025.
• Surpassed Iran striker Ali Daei’s all-time men’s record of 109 international goals.
• Featured in six World Cups and became the first player to score in six editions of the tournament.
• Announced he was retiring from international football in 2026 with 234 appearances and 146 goals, both world records in men’s international football.
RECORDS AND HONOURS
• Won five Ballons d’Or, five Champions League titles, one European Championship and two Nations League titles.
• Ronaldo became the first player to score 100 goals for four different clubs.
• Scored more than 980 official senior goals for club and country, the highest tally in men’s football.
• Retires from international football as the men’s game’s record appearance-maker and goalscorer.
(Compiled by Karan Prashant Saxena in Bengaluru; Editing by Ken Ferris)
