Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo is a Portuguese forward, widely regarded as one of the greatest footballers in history. He spent formative years at Sporting CP before joining Manchester United, where he won the first of his five Ballon d'Or awards. Subsequent stints at Real Madrid — where he won four UEFA Champions League titles and became the club's all-time top scorer — and Juventus cemented his status before a return to Manchester United in 2021 and a move to Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia in January 2023. He has scored a world-record 900-plus international and club goals combined.

On 23 June 2026, aged 41 years and 138 days, Ronaldo scored twice in Portugal's 5-0 win over Uzbekistan in Houston to achieve three simultaneous records: the first player to score at six different World Cups, the oldest man to score multiple goals in a single World Cup match, and Portugal's all-time leading World Cup scorer with 10 goals, surpassing Eusebio's record of nine.

He had entered the tournament already holding the record of six appearances alongside Lionel Messi, and as the only player to have scored at five separate World Cups. His 23 June brace, coming in a tournament where he was among the oldest members of the most age-heavy World Cup field on record, extended the statistical distance between himself and any predecessor at the position.

On 2 July, Ronaldo scored his first-ever World Cup knockout goal, converting a 68th-minute penalty in Portugal's 2-1 win over Croatia in Toronto after Ivan Perisic had put Croatia ahead; Goncalo Ramos's stoppage-time header sealed the win and ended Luka Modric's tournament. The goal is distinct from his six-World-Cups scoring record, since his five previous tournaments had produced goals only in the group stage; the Croatia penalty closes that gap. Portugal now face Spain in the round of 16.