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October 13, 2025
Cristiano Ronaldo’s recent comment — that he’d only play for Portugal if he could — sparked fresh debate about where his priorities now lie. At 40, the idea isn’t about contracts or fame anymore. It’s about identity, pride, and the one shirt he’s never stopped believing in...
Cristiano Ronaldo has said a lot of things that made headlines. But the line that caught everyone off guard recently was short and simple: “If I could, I’d only play for Portugal. I wouldn’t play for any other club.” No drama in his voice, no PR tone. Just that. Almost like a man thinking out loud. He’s 40 now, still scoring goals in Saudi Arabia, still training like it’s 2008. But this sentence felt different — not about goals or fitness. More like he’s getting honest with himself. It’s the kind of statement that reminds you how passion still drives him, even when the stakes aren’t financial anymore. In a way, it’s a bit like chasing that perfect win at Payid pokies — persistence, precision, and instinct. Whether it’s football or payid online pokies, the thrill never really fades, and for those exploring pokies online payid, that same sense of competition and timing keeps the game alive.
Cristiano Ronaldo - The Portuguese King
People forget how much he’s invested emotionally in that shirt. This isn’t just “national duty.” It’s who he is. Every major moment of his career has Portugal somewhere in the background — the anthem, the armband, the noise from home.
Think about Euro 2016. Tears, shouting from the sidelines, limping on one leg but refusing to sit down. That wasn’t performance; it was instinct. He sees the team as something personal. Almost private.
So when he says he’d rather only play for Portugal, it doesn’t sound strange if you’ve followed his career long enough. It sounds… about right.
Here’s the thing — football isn’t set up for that. Clubs own the schedules, the rights, the rhythm. National teams come and go a few times a year.
To play international matches, you need match tempo, real competition, constant sharpness. You lose that if you’re not playing week to week. Even Ronaldo can’t train alone and turn up ready to face France or Argentina.
FIFA’s rules don’t help either. Players have to be registered to a club to be eligible for official matches. So even if he wanted to go full-time national, there’s no clear way to do it. The system wasn’t built for it.
Still, this is Ronaldo we’re talking about. He’s been rewriting rules since he left Sporting. If anyone could make the football world rethink how it works, it’s him.
Not at his level. Most players do the opposite — quit the national team early to extend their club years. They chase another season, another contract, one more paycheck.
In other sports like cricket, you can live off international duty alone. Football doesn’t work like that. The club season is the job. The rest is a bonus.
But Ronaldo never really followed other people’s blueprints. He was the first to make a move to Saudi football actually look strategic. What sounded like a “retirement plan” ended up turning into a movement. So maybe the idea of “Portugal only” isn’t completely impossible in the long run.
Let’s picture it. He finishes at Al Nassr in 2027. No new club after that. He stays fit, trains privately with a few staff members, joins the Portugal setup whenever they call.
He’d play sparingly — the big nights, maybe the qualifiers, maybe a Euros. The rest of the time, he’d be around as a kind of player-coach. The voice in the dressing room nobody ignores.
Would it work in practice? Hard to say. He’d lose sharpness fast. But that’s not really the point anymore, is it?
He’s reached a point where the sport has given him everything. Goals, money, fame, respect — the full package. What’s left is comfort. Not luxury, but emotional comfort.
Playing just for Portugal might be his way of keeping that feeling alive. The sense of pride, belonging, the anthem before kickoff. Stuff you can’t buy or replicate.
So when he says he’d only play for Portugal, maybe he’s not talking logistics. Maybe it’s more like: “When it’s all said and done, I want to end where I started.”
Simple as that!
Cristiano Ronaldo next game for Portugal is on October 14, against Hungary, for the the World Cup Qualifiers. You can watch Portugal vs Hungary, Iceland vs France, Spain vs Bulgaria, Wales vs Belgium, Italy vs Israel and Northern Ireland vs Germany, all matches provided from our soccer live game pages.
Portugal next game:
Portugal vs Hungary kick-off time (14-10-2025):
Beijing (China) | UTC/GMT+7: 02:45
India (New Delhi) | UTC/GMT+4.30: 00:15
Saudi Arabia (Riyadh) | UTC/GMT+2: 21:45
Spain (Madrid) | UTC/GMT+1: 20:45
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | UTC/GMT+0: 19:45
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | UTC/GMT-3: 16:45
New York (United States) | UTC/GMT-4: 15:45
Los Angeles (United States) | UTC/GMT-7: 12:45
Sources: ronaldo7.net / beinsports.com / worldsoccertalk.com
