Cristiano Ronaldo leaves Portugal camp — Could this be the end of his international career?

Ronaldo was initially supposed to train with his team-mates at the Parken stadium in Copenhagen on Wednesday but is learnt to have left after Jorge Jesus’s pre-match press conference, where the Portugal manager said Ronaldo will not start against Denmark.

Updated : Oct 01, 2026 07:48 IST , Chennai - 4 MINS READ

Ronaldo is Portugal’s leading goalscorer and most capped player, with 146 goals in 234 appearances. The 41-year-old had also earlier hinted that 2026 could be his last year in football.  | Photo Credit: REUTERS

Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has left the national team camp ahead of his side’s UEFA Nations League match against Denmark on Thursday.

“Following the national team coach’s press conference, and after having a conversation with the Portuguese Football Federation president, I decided to leave the national team’s training camp,” Ronaldo said in a post on social media.

“In due course, I will tell the truth to all the Portuguese people about my reasons for leaving the national team, to which I have always been dedicated.

“Now is time to wish good luck to Portugal and to all my team-mates, without exception.”

Ronaldo was initially supposed to train with his team-mates at the Parken stadium in Copenhagen on Wednesday but is learnt to have left after Jorge Jesus’s pre-match press conference, where the Portugal manager said Ronaldo will not start against Denmark.

““If everything goes according to plan, it will be Goncalo who plays. If I need him (Ronaldo), he’ll come on. If I don’t need him, he won’t,” Jesus said.

Após a conferência de imprensa do Selecionador Nacional, e no seguimento de uma conversa com o Presidente da Federação Portuguesa de Futebol, tomei a decisão de deixar o estágio da Seleção Nacional.

A seu tempo, direi a verdade a todos os Portugueses sobre as razões que… pic.twitter.com/j8Qrws9KTS

— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) September 30, 2026

The 41-year-old was benched and did not get a chance to play in Portugal’s previous match against Norway, which the former won 2-1. Incidentally, it was Ramos who scored the winning goal in that game.

Reports of a rift with Jesus emerged after Ronaldo went straight to the dressing room after the final whistle, skipping the customary post-match pleasantries with his Portugal teammates.

“There was no incident whatsoever,” Jesus told reporters.

“Any player -- and I was a player myself... when you spend 20 or 30 minutes warming up and then don’t get on... no one is happy about that,” Jesus said after the game.

The former Benfica boss also explained that Ronaldo had not refused to train on Tuesday, as some Portuguese media outlets had suggested, but that he had had to do individual exercises for physical “mobility” and “strengthening”.

Jesus had said that the five-time Ballon d’Or winner would train as normal on Wednesday. But despite arriving at the stadium in the team bus, Ronaldo missed training in Copenhagen.

ALSO READ | Portugal boss Jesus denies rift with Ronaldo, but says forward Ramos will start against Denmark

Portuguese media shared a video of him leaving the Parken stadium along with two members of the backroom staff just after Jesus’s press conference.

They also said that Ronaldo’s private jet was heading to Copenhagen.

Following Ronaldo’s social media post, the Portuguese federation released a statement confirming that the former Real Madrid, Manchester United and Juventus player had left the squad’s training camp.

“Preparation for the two matches against Denmark and Norway... continue as planned with the 24 remaining squad members,” the federation said.

“The entire delegation remains totally focussed on the national team’s next fixtures and on achieving the established objectives.”

The incident triggered a flurry of social media posts pondering his future, whether this could be the end of his Portugal career.

Ronaldo’s sister, Elma Aveiro, also took to Instagram to voice her displeasure over the controversy.

“They don’t deserve to have the best of anything,” she said about the Portuguese people.

“We are envious, scornful, and ignorant, and we deserve to return to the mediocrity that defined us in the pre-CR7 era of football.”

Ronaldo is Portugal’s leading goalscorer and most capped player, with 146 goals in 234 appearances. The 41-year-old had also earlier hinted that 2026 could be his last year in football.

Published on Oct 01, 2026

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