Cristiano Ronaldo, who turned 40 on February 5, still has two major goals left in his career: reaching the historic milestone of 1,000 goals—he currently stands at 928 in professional football—and competing in the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America with the Portuguese national team. With just 15 months to go until the tournament, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner remains in top form with Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia and continues to serve as Portugal’s captain despite a disappointing Euro 2024 campaign. He is not expected to retire from international football before the start of the World Cup qualifiers in September.
Portugal Awaits Its Group in the World Cup Qualifiers
Portugal has yet to learn its qualification group for the 2026 World Cup, which will be held across Canada, the United States, and Mexico. Roberto Martinez’s squad finds itself in a similar situation to France. If Portugal wins its UEFA Nations League quarterfinal clash against Denmark—set for Thursday in Copenhagen and Sunday in Lisbon—it will be placed in Group F alongside Hungary, Ireland, and Armenia. However, if the Portuguese team falls to Denmark, they will be assigned to Group C, where they would face Greece, Scotland, and Belarus.
A Challenging Path to the World Cup?
One qualification path appears significantly tougher than the other. If placed in Group F, Portugal would begin its campaign on September 6, facing Armenia, ranked 100th in the FIFA rankings. They would then take on Hungary, the second-seeded team in the group and currently ranked 30th in the world, followed by a match against Ireland (ranked 60th) in October 2024.
However, if Portugal ends up in Group C, it would face a much more difficult start, with matches against two top-50 teams—Scotland (ranked 45th) and Greece (ranked 39th). Belarus, though ranked 98th, poses a lesser challenge. Only the 12 group winners will earn direct qualification for the World Cup, while second-place finishers will have to navigate a high-stakes playoff tournament in the form of a Final Four competition.
Portugal’s Talent Versus Tough Opponents
With stars such as Nuno Mendes, Vitinha, Joao Neves, and Gonçalo Ramos, Portugal boasts a squad talented enough to dominate the qualifiers. However, Ruben Dias and his teammates recently struggled against Scotland in the UEFA Nations League, securing a narrow 1-0 victory in the 88th minute at the Estádio da Luz and managing only a goalless draw at Hampden Park against a Scottish team featuring Andy Robertson and Scott McTominay.
Greece is another team that cannot be underestimated. They finished level on points with England in their Nations League group and even pulled off a stunning 2-1 victory at Wembley, thanks to a brace from Vangelis Pavlidis—a name well-known in Portugal, as he currently plays for Benfica.
As Portugal prepares for its qualification journey, the road to the 2026 World Cup is shaping up to be anything but easy.
