Cristiano Ronaldo has announced that his international career with Portugal is over, leaving the 41-year-old forward to focus entirely on playing for Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr. The legendary attacker is now primarily motivated by a final historic objective: becoming the first player in football history to reach 1,000 career goals. Currently standing on 985 strikes, Ronaldo brings an end to his national team chapter to dedicate his remaining playing days to reaching that unprecedented four-figure milestone.
Ronaldo's journey started at Sporting, where he managed five goals in 31 first-team appearances before catching the attention of Manchester United during a 2003 pre-season match. Following an urge from the United squad and manager Alex Ferguson, the English club signed him five days later for £12m. After winning the FA Cup in his debut season, Ronaldo's career soared in 2006-07 with 17 league goals, a Premier League title, and both the player and young player of the year awards. He eventually tallied 118 goals in 292 matches during that initial stint at Old Trafford, collecting another league title, his first European Golden Shoe, a Champions League trophy, and the inaugural FIFA Puskas Award for a 40-yard screamer against Porto before departing for Real Madrid for £80m.
His spell in the Spanish capital rewritten history books, as Ronaldo left Real Madrid with 450 goals in just 438 appearances and recorded six consecutive seasons with at least 50 goals across all competitions. Along with winning two La Liga titles and two Copa del Rey trophies, he became the first footballer to win five Champions League titles, lifting the European crown four times with Madrid following his 2008 triumph with United. Internationally, Ronaldo secured major silverware at Euro 2016 when Portugal defeated hosts France 1-0 in Paris, a game in which he took on an unofficial coaching role after coming off injured in the first half. He walks away as the leading scorer in European Championship history with 14 goals, having also surpassed Ali Daei's long-standing men's international world record with two late headers against the Republic of Ireland.
A five-time Ballon d'Or recipient with league championships secured across England, Spain, Italy, and Saudi Arabia, Ronaldo holds the Champions League all-time record with 141 goals in 187 matches. Moving forward, the veteran forward will channel his full attention toward Al-Nassr fixtures. Requiring just 15 more goals to reach the historic 1,000-goal mark, the final stretch of Ronaldo's club career will center on whether he can complete his quest before finally hanging up his boots.