A stoic Cristiano Ronaldo exits
last World Cup with 'clear conscience' after Portugal loses to Spain
[July 07, 2026]
By STEPHEN HAWKINS
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Cristiano Ronaldo walked off the pitch after
his final World Cup match for Portugal with a stoic look on his face
and only the slightest hint of emotion. There was a brief wave to
acknowledge cheering fans, and the same feeling he has had after
past losses.
“Sad — it’s normal after being eliminated like this,” said Ronaldo,
who briefly shielded his eyes with his right hand after the match.
The sixth and final World Cup for the 41-year-old superstar ended
with a 1-0 loss to border rival Spain in a round of 16 game on
Monday.
“I’ve given everything, I’ve given my best, and I leave with a clear
conscience,” he said. “This is soccer, this is life for a soccer
player. Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose.”
Ronaldo, the only player to score goals in six World Cups in a row
and the career leader in international goals with 146, said the day
before that he hoped it wouldn't be his final match in this run and
wanted to enjoy it to the fullest.
But he reiterated then — and again after the loss to Spain — that
this was his last time in the tournament that's played every four
years. The deepest he ever went in the World Cup was the semifinals
in his 2006 debut.
As for his other future plans, he wasn't ready to say.
“Yes, it was my last World Cup, but everything else I’ll have time
to think about, to be with my family, and not make any decision
hot-headed and move on with life,” he said.
Ronaldo was denied a goal in the first half against Spain when
record-setting goalkeeper Unai Simón made an impressive leaping
stop. That was one of his three shots.
Two of those were on target, including the one on which Simón was
still in midair when he reached back to grab the ball with both
hands. Ronaldo got off a backward kick with his right foot after a
header by teammate João Félix bounced off Simón’s shoulder.
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Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo (7) reacts after the end of the World
Cup round of 16 soccer match between Portugal and Spain in
Arlington, Texas, near Dallas, Monday, July 6, 2026. (AP
Photo/Jessica Tobias)
“He is an example, a role model to follow. This is
somebody that we need to celebrate. We’re talking about a football
icon,” Portugal coach Roberto Martínez said in translated remarks.
“There aren’t too many Cristiano Ronaldos out there. I think we need
to thank him. His dream was to win the World Cup and he did this as
an amazing example in the locker room.”
Portugal had never won a major international tournament before
Ronaldo. The first was the 2016 European Championship, before adding
Nations League titles in 2019 and 2025.
Ronaldo's finale on soccer’s biggest stage came eight years after he
recorded a World Cup hat trick at age 33. That made him the oldest
to have one, and that stood until then-38-year-old Lionel Messi
scored three goals for Argentina in a 3-0 win over Algeria on June
16.
The hat trick for Ronaldo came in a 3-3 draw with Spain in a group
stage opener that's considered one of the tournament's best matches,
although both powers didn’t reach the knockout stage.
He scored three goals in this World Cup, and his 11 overall are tied
for ninth on the career list.
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