2026 World Cup: Will the legendary Cristiano Ronaldo feature at this summer's tournament?

The Last Dance.

Cristiano Ronaldo's final chance of ending what has been a glorious career with a World Cup success will come at the 2026 competition, which is taking place in Canada, Mexico and the United States.

Ronaldo confirmed towards the end of last year that the 2026 World Cup would be his last.

"Definitely, yes. I will be 41 years old, and I think [this] will be the moment in the big competition," he said in an interview at the Tourise Summit in Riyadh.

Ronaldo is the all-time leading men's international goalscorer, having found the back of the net on 143 occasions for Portugal in 226 appearances, in addition to registering 46 assists.

At the finals of a World Cup, the 41-year-old has eight goals and two assists in 22 appearances, and he helped his side reach the semi-finals of the 2006 competition.

The 2026 World Cup will be Ronaldo's last chance to win the famous tournament

Since then, Portugal have fell at the round of 16 twice, in addition to a shock group-stage exit in 2014, while they made it to the quarter-finals of the 2022 tournament, losing to Morocco.

Ronaldo has unfinished business at the World Cup, and Roberto Martinez confirmed his place in a 27-man squad announced on 19 May 2026 - setting him up for a record sixth World Cup appearance.

The forward rounded off an impressive club season, scoring 28 goals in 30 league appearances as Al-Nassr were crowned Saudi Pro League champions - marking Ronaldo's first league title with the Riyadh club, as well as 30 goals in 37 appearances across all competitions.

It was the ideal warm-up act ahead of what he has confirmed will be his final World Cup.

Ronaldo's ongoing importance for Portugal is demonstrated by the fact that he scored five times during their qualification campaign for the competition - ending their qualifying run as top scorer.

Ronaldo is available for Portugal's first two matches of 2026 World Cup despite a recent red card

Portugal will take on Chile and Nigeria in two pre-World Cup friendlies in early June before beginning their tournament against DR Congo on June 17; Roberto Martinez's side will then face Uzbekistan and Colombia on June 23 and June 28, respectively.

Ronaldo was sent off in Portugal's World Cup qualifier against Republic of Ireland last November and faced being banned for his country's opening two group matches this summer.

However, FIFA decided to suspend the final two games of his suspension for one year, with the disciplinary committee taking into account that it was Ronaldo's first red card for his country.

As a result, outside of suffering a devastating injury in Portugal's two warm-up fixtures, Ronaldo will be available for his country's 2026 World Cup opener against DR Congo, and it will be fascinating to see what the tournament holds for the greatest goalscorer of all time.