Cristiano Ronaldo spoke about his remaining career goals after being presented yet another individual award in his native Portugal this week, in recognition of 22 years of service to the national team.
Ronaldo will celebrate his 41st birthday in February but has a contract with Al Nassr until 2027 and is expecting to play at a sixth World Cup next year—together, he and Lionel Messi will jointly break the record for most World Cup tournament appearances set by Germany’s Lothar Matthäus in 1998.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner admitted he doesn’t have “many” years left and is no longer obsessively pursuing particular targets like he did in his youth. But winning the World Cup with Portugal, who have never finished higher than third (1966), is something he’d like to do.
Ronaldo, the first soccer billionaire, helped Portugal win a first ever major international trophy at Euro 2016, but he watched Messi steer Argentina to victory at the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“I think I still have a lot to contribute to the national team and to football. I want to keep playing for a few years, not many, I have to be honest,” he said on stage, via Record.
“I want to thank all my teammates, for having learned from all of them—and even from this younger generation as well. For me, it’s a privilege to be with you. Our goal is to win the next two [qualifying] games and be in the World Cup. The World Cup will come soon. We have to think solely and exclusively about the present, but with our thoughts ahead. It would be a dream [to win it].
He added: “But step by step. Obviously, our goal is to go to the World Cup and win, as we all want, but we have to go step by step.”
Portugal face Republic of Ireland and Hungary over the coming days. Two victories in those games, if Armenia also fail to take more than a point from their two fixtures, would mean qualifying for the 2026 finals in North America right away, with two more games to spare.
Ronaldo: Passion Driving Pursuit of 1,000 Goals
Across 23 years with Sporting CP, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Juventus, Al Nassr and Portugal, Ronaldo is already the highest scoring footballer of all time. His senior career tally stands at 946 official goals, including the world record for most goals in men’s international football at 141.
Just 54 more would get him to 1,000, becoming the first player to reach four figures—tallies in excess of that milestone claimed by Brazilian legends Pelé (1,279) and Romário (1,002) are contested because they include those scored in unofficial or unrecognised matches.
“I still have a passion for [playing football],” Ronaldo said. “My family says it’s time to stop and they ask me why I want to score 1,000 goals when I’ve already scored 900 or so. But deep down, I don’t think so. I’m still producing good things, I’m helping my club and the national team.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s Career Statistics
“Why not keep going? I’m sure that when it’s over, I’ll leave feeling fulfilled because I gave it my all. It’s about enjoying the moment. I know I don’t have many more years to play, but the little I have, or the little I have, I have to make the most of.
“I’ll be honest,” he continued, “…I don’t see it as an obsession. If you’d asked me 20 years ago, I might have answered differently, like I wanted to eat the world, but now I don’t see things that way. Age also allows us to think differently. I have a philosophy of living day by day. In everyday life, things change in a moment. You can’t make long-term plans.
“Right now, I make short-term plans because it gives me more energy that way, more of a desire to live. I enjoy each day, training session by training session and competition by competition. Then, down the road, we’ll see.”
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Cristiano Ronaldo Wins Another Award, Reveals Two Remaining Career Objectives.
