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Lionel Messi Announces Retirement from Argentina National Team After 20 Years
Cristiano Ronaldo is kicking off a new chapter in his life.
More than 20 years after the soccer player made his debut for Portugal's National Team, he announced his international retirement with an emotional reflection on his legendary career.
"To the Portuguese people, the day has come for me to hand back the No. 7 shirt of our national team," Ronaldo began in his Nov. 5 Instagram video. "I never felt it belonged to me alone, but for 23 years, I had the privilege and the responsibility of wearing it, defending it and carrying it with me into stadiums all around the world."
"Today, the time has come to pass it on to the future," he continued. "It was not an easy decision because some decisions are not made with the mind alone. They are also made with the heart. A journey that began in August 2003 and changed my life forever has come to an end."
Although the team's all-time top scorer is blowing the whistle on his international career, he will continue playing at the club level with Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia.
As Ronaldo—who holds the men's all-time global scoring record with 146 goals over 234 matches—expressed gratitude for his legacy, he also reflected on the most important lessons he is taking with him off the field.
"I learned a few very simple things," he explained in the video, "goals fade. Trophies end up in museums. Records are eventually broken. But there is something that time can never erase: the place we hold in people's hearts."
"When I look back at everything with the national team, I don't just see the matches, goals, records or trophies," he said. "I see millions of Portuguese people I have never met, but who became part of my life. Because, at the end of the day, football is so much bigger than a game. Football is about people."
Carlos Rodrigues/Getty Images)
The athlete shared a special message for his Portugal teammates, including Real Madrid's Bernardo Silva, as well as his former Manchester United teammates Bruno Fernandes and Rúben Dias.
"Thank you for every run, for every embrace, for every argument, for every silence before stepping onto the pitch," Ronaldo said, "for every victory we celebrated together, and every defeat that made us stronger. I had the privilege of being your captain, but no captain walks alone. You will always be part of my story."
Though he and head coach Jorge Jesus had a falling out earlier this season—which led to Ronaldo being slapped with a 30-day suspension and a $285 fine for walking out of Portugal's training camp over a dispute about his playing time—the athlete thanked everyone behind the scenes. (Jesus addressed the spat in a statement, noting that he was going to "think about the Portuguese national team" and had "nothing more to say.”)
Ronaldo emphasized, "Many of you never appeared in the photographs, but without you, none of those photographs would be possible."
He also put a spotlight on his wife Georgina Rodríguez, their 9-year-old twins Eva and Mateo, and kids Alana, 8, and Bella, 4.
Boris Streubel - UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images
"To my family, thank you for sharing this dream with me," he said. "Thank you for understanding the absences, the sacrifices and the moments when the national team had to take up a space in my life that also belonged to you. If I came this far, it was because we always walked hand in hand."
Following the announcement, the team shared its own Nov. 5 statement, thanking Ronaldo for his "absolutely extraordinary career" and noting that there will be a "fitting tribute" for his departure.
"Every drop of sweat, every decisive goal, and every captain's armband worn with pride on the field reflected his unconditional love for our jersey," the message read. "His dedication and legacy transcend the four lines of the pitch."
"Cristiano Ronaldo has elevated Portugal's name and inspired generations of young people who dream of following in his footsteps, being, for many of us, the best player of all time," it continued. “Thank you for everything, CAPTAIN! This will always be your home!"
As Ronaldo focuses on what's next, keep reading for a closer look at his game-winning family.
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Georgina Rodríguez
When Cristiano Ronaldo met Georgina Rodríguez in 2016 at a Gucci store in Madrid where she was working as a sales assistant, No. 7 didn't dare think he'd met the one.
He had previously acknowledged that, while there were plenty of women eager to date him, he was aware that many of them had ulterior motives.
"To speak serious, it is not easy," Ronaldo said on the U.K.'s Jonathan Ross Show in November 2015, months after he and Irina Shayk ended a five-year relationship. "I know 50 percent approach just for interest. It's normal, not just me, but all the people who are famous, they have these kinds of problems."
Cristiano Ronaldo/Instagram
So when he started dating Georgina, "I didn't expect it, honestly," Ronaldo said in the Netflix series I Am Georgina. "But after a while I felt that she was the woman of my life."
He often picked her up after work and, as she recalled in the series, per the show's Spanish-to-English translation, "I remember once in a Bugatti. My coworkers went crazy. They get there on the bus, and I would leave in a Bugatti. I mean people couldn't believe it."
But instead of ferrying her to an equally attention-grabbing location, they'd usually just go home, Cristiano said, "into our own world."
Georgina described her partner as "great" and "a very normal guy," noting, "I dreamed of having a Prince Charming by my side and now I have him."
For years her official title (Mrs.? Princess?) was unclear, Ronaldo publicly referring to Georgina as his wife long before she said "I do" to a massive diamond engagement ring in August 2025.
Burak Akbulut/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
Cristiano Ronaldo Jr.
Cristiano Ronaldo Jr. was born on June 17, 2010, while his dad was in South Africa playing in the World Cup. But the athlete flew immediately to see his firstborn child as soon as Portugal was knocked out of the tournament—and proceeded to raise him as a single dad.
"It is with great joy and emotion that I inform I have recently become father to a baby boy,” he shared in a statement on his social media accounts at the time. "As agreed with the baby’s mother, who prefers to have her identity kept confidential, my son will be under my exclusive guardianship."
Cristiano Ronaldo/Instagram
Cristiano Jr. has been front and center in his father's life ever since, traveling all over the world with him and, naturally, picking up the beautiful game.
The teen trained at the youth clubs of whichever team Ronaldo was playing for, including Real Madrid and Juventus. And when the family moved to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in 2023 after the five-time Ballon d'Or winner signed a contract worth $200 million a year with Al Nassr FC, Cristiano Jr. subsequently started playing in the team's youth academy.
But though his eldest child has designs on playing professionally, which Ronaldo would admittedly love, he insists he's not pressuring Cristiano Jr. to make that dream a reality.
Georgina Rodriguez/Instagram
"This generation, it's difficult to tell them something and let them do it...They see me every day what I do, at home, or in training or in a game," the athlete said on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast in September 2024. "They say, 'My dad works a lot every time.' They see that."
As for his son, he continued, "He has pressure on him already being the son of Cristiano...Let him do his things. I hope so, in the future, he can be a professional player. If he's not a player, does another job, I always will support him. We can't make pressure on our sons because we are famous."
And yet it's looking good, with his son helping lead Portugal's under-16 squad to a win over England in the Federations Cup Tournament in November 2025.
"I love being a mom," Georgina captioned pics celebrating his victory. "I am very proud of my big boy."
While Georgina didn't come into Ronaldo's life until his son was 6, she considers Cristiano Jr. as much her son as she does the kids they later had together.
When the lad turned 14 in 2024, she posted to her Instagram, "Happy Birthday to my big boy...I love you to the moon and baaacccckkkk." (She also wasn't kidding about big: In the video she shared of him opening presents, the teen was taller than his mom. And the proud owner of a Louis Vuitton roller bag.)
Mateo and Eva Maria Ronaldo
Ronaldo was about seven months into his relationship with Georgina when he welcomed twins Mateo and Eva Maria Ronaldo via surrogate on June 8, 2017.
"So happy to be able to hold the two new loves of my life," he captioned the first photo he shared of his infant son and daughter a few weeks later.
Yasser Bakhsh/Getty Images
And so Georgina became mom to Ronaldo's three eldest children, telling Vogue Mexico in 2024, "Being a mother is the best thing that's ever happened to me and my absolute priority. Every moment I spend with my family is when I'm happiest and most realized."
Cristiano Ronaldo/Instagram
Alana Martina Ronaldo
Georgina gave birth to daughter Alana Martina Ronaldo, her first child with Ronaldo, on Nov. 12, 2017. And she's already co-captain of the whole family team.
In Netflix's I Am Georgina, which premiered in 2022, Ronaldo asked Alana at the dinner table what she wanted to be when she grew up, and she hilariously pushed back.
"Nothing," she said in Spanish. "Nothing. I wanna stay at home and be at peace."
Her dad had a good laugh, then predicted that she would be an actress. When she instead mimed taking photos, he suggested "Netflix producer," and Alana heartily agreed, clapping her hands.
EyePress News/Shutterstock
Bella Esmeralda and Ángel Ronaldo
Cristiano and Georgina welcomed twins Bella Esmeralda Ronald and Ángel Ronaldo on April 18, 2022, but Ángel died at birth.
"This year I had the best and the worst moment of my life in an instant," Georgina reflected on a season two episode of her series that dropped in 2023.
"Life is hard," she continued. "Life goes on...I have reasons to move on and be strong. Cris really encouraged me to continue with my agenda. He said, 'Gio, get on with life. It'll do you good.'"
At the same time, Ronaldo has said that, after having to share with their other children the devastating news that Bella's twin wouldn't be coming home, they talk about Ángel every day.
"The kids understand, we had shouts around the table and they say, 'Daddy, I did this for Ángel,' and they point to the sky," Ronaldo shared in a November 2022 interview with Piers Morgan. "Which I like the most because he's part of their lives. I am not gonna lie to my kids, I say the truth, which was a difficult process."
Netflix
Bella is happily thriving, Georgina sharing video of her youngest on her lap while they watched one of her sibling’s school performances in December 2024.
Cristiano Ronaldo/Instagram
“Seeing my kids grow up happy and sharing moments with my family is my best blessing. I couldn't be happier with the wonderful family we've made," Georgina said in the Netflix series. "My kids are wonderful. I know it's bad to say it but they're perfect kids, they're a dream."
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