Cristiano Ronaldo suspended by Portuguese Football Federation
Cristiano Ronaldo has been provisionally suspended by the Portuguese Football Federation after walking away from the national team, reports BritPanorama.
The 41-year-old superstar withdrew from the Portugal squad after being an unused substitute in a 2-1 Nations League victory away to Norway on September 27.
Ronaldo, who has scored a record 146 goals in 234 appearances for his country, later published a nearly 2,000-word statement claiming he had withdrawn following a “breach of trust” with head coach Jorge Jesus. In light of this, the Portuguese Football Federation has initiated disciplinary proceedings against the veteran forward.
“Disciplinary proceedings were initiated against Cristiano Ronaldo, by decision of the non-professional section, on October 9, 2026, with the objective of ascertaining the potential disciplinary relevance of the facts reported on October 7, 2026,” the Federation said in a statement seen by Lisbon-based newspaper A Bola. “Without prejudice to the automatic preventive suspension to which he was subject until the date of initiation, a non-automatic preventive suspension of the player was determined, and the proceedings were given urgent status.”
The proceedings were subsequently sent to the disciplinary instruction committee of the FPF on October 10, 2026, with publicity excluded until the end of the investigation. Ronaldo missed Portugal’s subsequent two fixtures, victories over Denmark and Norway, as they maintained their perfect record with four consecutive wins to top Group A4.
The 41-year-old’s absence from the tie fuelled speculation that his international career was ending. However, Jesus refused to rule out a return for the former Manchester United and Real Madrid star. Speaking after Sunday’s victory over Norway, the head coach stated: “If he wants to, he’ll return to the national team.”
Ronaldo claimed that Jesus had broken an agreement on how many minutes he would play but apologised for his conduct and accepted that he deserved sanction. In his letter following the Norway game, Ronaldo stated he was promised 30 minutes, then warmed up but wasn’t brought on.
He also mentioned that he remained available to represent Portugal after any punishment for leaving camp and apologised for his actions after the Norway match. On Friday, he appeared to put the dispute behind him, scoring for club side Al Nassr in their 3-0 Saudi Pro League victory over Diriyah.
Ronaldo’s statement outlined his version of a private conversation with Jesus and included eight points he said the coach agreed to address publicly. Among them was an acknowledgement that it was a mistake to warm up a player of Ronaldo’s stature and then not bring him on. Jesus has disputed that he agreed to make the points. Meanwhile, Ronaldo insists he is not retired from Portugal duty and remains hopeful of representing his country in the future while currently focusing on playing for Al Nassr, who are aiming to win the Saudi Pro League for the second year in a row.
In the world of football, few stories are more complex or layered than that of Cristiano Ronaldo—a superstar who defies convention yet remains at the centre of drama, reminding us that even legends face their own trials in pursuit of greatness.
