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July 1, 2026
After scoring twice against Uzbekistan in Houston, Cristiano Ronaldo became the first player ever to score at six different World Cups. At 41, Portugal’s captain answered his critics again, broke Eusébio’s national World Cup scoring record, and created a milestone that may never be matched...
There had been questions. There are always questions. After Portugal’s 1-1 draw with DR Congo in their World Cup opener — a match in which Ronaldo had two chances and missed both — the debate erupted again. Drop him. Rest him. The 41-year-old is finished at this level. It is a narrative that has followed him for years, recycled with every below-par performance, every missed opportunity, every tournament in which age seems to have finally caught up with the man who has refused, his entire career, to accept any such thing. Then came Uzbekistan. Then came Houston. Then came the sixth minute, and a cross from João Cancelo, and a swivel on the six-yard box, and the ball smashing beyond the goalkeeper. The “siu” echoed around a stadium of 68,777 fans. Cristiano Ronaldo had just become the first player in the history of football to score at six different World Cups. Fans who want to mark the occasion by backing Portugal in the knockout rounds can grab a welcome offer from 1xBet ahead of what promises to be a historic run.
FIFA World Cup - Top scorers
The adidas Golden Boot race is heating up ♨️#FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/6ZRr2uGqvu
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) June 28, 2026
It started in Germany in 2006, when a 21-year-old Ronaldo scored against Iran in what would prove to be Portugal’s third-place World Cup — still their best finish in the modern era. Then South Africa 2010, Brazil 2014, Russia 2018, Qatar 2022. And now, at 41 years and 138 days old, the United States in 2026. Six tournaments. Six goals. Two decades of World Cup football, beginning and ending with the same certainty: when the moment arrives, Ronaldo delivers.
Against Uzbekistan, he did not just score once. He scored twice — a composed near-post finish early, then a cool one-on-one roll before half-time after a perfectly weighted through ball from Bruno Fernandes. That second goal took him to 10 World Cup goals in total, breaking the tie with Eusébio and making him Portugal’s all-time leading scorer in the competition. He is also now only the second player aged 40 or older to score at a World Cup — Roger Milla, who scored for Cameroon at 42 in 1994, remains the only man older. The list of records attached to Tuesday night in Houston is remarkable.
Let us be clear about what this record actually requires. To score at six World Cups, a player must first qualify for six World Cups — something that only happens if your country is consistently good enough and if you personally remain at the level required for selection across 20 years of international football. Then, across six tournaments, you must actually score. Not just appear, not just contribute, but find the net at each one. Messi, the only player to have matched Ronaldo in total World Cup appearances, scored at five. Five is the previous record. Six is something new.
The players currently in their prime who could theoretically challenge this record would need to be at the very top of the game from approximately 2022 to 2042. Football at 41, at the level Ronaldo is still performing — man of the match, two goals, top of Group K — is not a benchmark anyone should seriously expect another outfield player to replicate. Kylian Mbappé is 27. For him to score at six World Cups, he would need to still be doing so in 2042 at the age of 43. It is, for all practical purposes, untouchable.
What makes Tuesday’s performance so satisfying for every Ronaldo supporter is the context. This was not a routine win against easy opposition after a strong opening match. This was a response. A direct, emphatic, historical response to ten games without a goal in major tournaments — a drought stretching back to November 2022. It was a response to every pundit who suggested Roberto Martínez should drop him after the DR Congo draw. And it was delivered in the way Ronaldo has always responded best: by doing it on the pitch, in front of the world, when the stakes were highest.
“I always arrive. Sooner or later, I’m there. I truly believe that God helps those who work hard,” Ronaldo said after the match. “We know that when we don’t win, we get attacked. Especially me.” He has been saying versions of this his entire career. And he has been right, his entire career.
Portugal sit top of Group K with four points heading into their final group game against Colombia at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on 28 June. Win, and they are through as group winners. The dream of going deeper — a quarter-final, a semi-final, the trophy that has always eluded him — is still very much alive.
This is almost certainly Ronaldo’s final World Cup. He has 230 international caps — the most in the history of the men’s game. He has 145 international goals. He has now scored at six World Cups, a record that stands alone in football history. Whatever happens in Miami and beyond, Tuesday night in Houston already belongs to him forever.
Cristiano Ronaldo next game for Portugal is on July 2, against Croatia, for the FIFA World Cup. You can watch Portugal vs Croatia, USA vs Bosnia, Spain vs Austria, England vs Congo, Belgium vs Senegal and Switzerland vs Algeria, all matches provided from our soccer streaming game pages.
Portugal next game:
Portugal vs Croatia kick-off time (02-07-2026):
Beijing (China) | UTC/GMT+8: 07:00
India (New Delhi) | UTC/GMT+5.30: 05:00
Saudi Arabia (Riyadh) | UTC/GMT+4: 03:00
Spain (Madrid) | UTC/GMT+2: 01:00
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | UTC/GMT+1: 00:00
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | UTC/GMT-3: 20:00
New York (United States) | UTC/GMT-4: 19:00
Los Angeles (United States) | UTC/GMT-7: 16:00
Sources: ronaldo7.net / espn.co.uk / dawn.com
