Cristiano Ronaldo is on the verge of once again etching his name into the history books. The 41-year-old forward, included in Portugal's squad announced for the 2026 World Cup, will participate in his sixth World Cup.
To date, no footballer has taken part in six editions of this tournament. Besides Ronaldo, Antonio Carbajal, Rafael Marquez, Lothar Matthaus, Andres Guardado, and Lionel Messi have played in five World Cups.
Messi and Matthaus are not in the 2026 World Cup squad. The absolute record will belong to Cristiano.
For reference, Ronaldo is currently the player with the most appearances and most goals for the Portugal national football team. His participation in the upcoming World Cup is expected to go down in history as yet another absolute record.
Let us recall that Ronaldo played in the 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, and 2022 World Cups. In this way, he becomes the first footballer in history to participate in six editions of the World Cup.
