Portugal travel to Wales on Thursday and host Denmark three days later with a 28-man list that, for the first time in a generation, does not carry the five-time Ballon d’Or winner’s name. Argentina’s November fixtures have lost their anchor too. The simultaneous absence of both men from this window is the quiet end of the longest double act international football has carried.
Cristiano Ronaldo, 41, announced his retirement from the national team on 5 November in a message posted to his social channels.
“To the Portuguese people, the day has come for me to hand back the No. 7 shirt of our national team.”
“A journey that began in August 2003 and changed my life forever has come to an end.”
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He leaves as the record holder for both most men’s international appearances (234) and most international goals (146). His final cap was a 1-0 home win over Wales on 24 September.
A 30-day ban and a parting with Jesus
The exit was not a clean fade. Ronaldo served a 30-day suspension from the Portuguese Football Federation for walking out of the September training camp before a Denmark fixture, after Jorge Jesus had left him on the bench against Norway and told him he would not start the next match either. Ronaldo headed straight to the dressing room at full time in Oslo and did not travel with the squad to the following game.
Jesus, appointed Portugal manager in July 2026 after Roberto Martínez stepped down, named his new squad with seven new faces, including five players from the under-21s.
“I thought he would return. I certainly intended to call him up,” Jesus told reporters at his squad announcement on 6 November.
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Jesus said he had learned of the retirement at the same moment as everyone else, and insisted the decisions that led to it had been taken with the team in mind. The Portuguese Football Federation moved to close ranks around its departing captain, with FA president Pedro Proença using the squad presentation to promise a public tribute.
“No tribute will ever be enough to thank him for everything he has done for Portuguese football.”
Messi’s quieter exit
Lionel Messi’s goodbye was neither contentious nor sudden. The 39-year-old announced on 31 August that he was stepping away from Argentina, posting a handwritten Spanish-language letter on Instagram six weeks after Argentina lost the World Cup final 1-0 to Spain in East Rutherford on 19 July.
“Time is running short, chapters come to a close, and this is one that hurts me deeply.”
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He drafted the letter two days after the final, held it, and only posted it at the end of August after the death of his father, Jorge. He continues at Inter Miami, where his contract runs through 2028. His Argentina ledger closes on 207 caps and 125 goals, a 21-year career that produced the 2022 World Cup and two Copa América titles.
Between them, the two forwards leave international football with 441 appearances and 271 goals.
The squads that take over
Portugal and Argentina now rebuild in the Nations League and in the pre-World Cup friendly calendar without the figures their attacking identities were built around. Jesus will lean on João Félix, who has scored three goals in four internationals this year, and on Bruno Fernandes as creator. Argentina’s set-up under Lionel Scaloni passes to a front line that no longer routes through the No. 10.
Portugal’s Nations League fixture against Wales kicks off in Cardiff on Thursday evening, with Denmark in Braga to follow on Sunday.
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