Cristiano Ronaldo broke the men’s international appearance record on Thursday when he started Portugal’s Euro 2024 qualifier against Liechtenstein. The 38‑year‑old, who was dropped from the Portuguese starting XI during the World Cup in Qatar last year, earned his 197th cap for his country. “Records are my motivation,” Ronaldo told reporters on Wednesday. “I want to become the most capped player in history. That would make me proud. But it doesn’t stop there—I still want to be called up very often.”
Ronaldo made his international debut in 2003 and became the first man to score in five World Cups last year, before Portugal lost to Morocco in the quarter‑finals. He is currently playing for Saudi club Al Nassr after an acrimonious end to his second spell at Manchester United. His appearance off the bench in the defeat by Morocco equalled the previous mark of 196 caps held by Kuwait’s Bader Al‑Mutawa, and he left the pitch in tears after Portugal’s shock 1‑0 loss.
The five‑time Ballon d’Or winner will also be hoping to increase his record tally of 118 international goals as Portugal begin their qualification campaign for next year’s European Championship in Germany. Since leaving Europe, Ronaldo has scored nine goals in 10 matches for Al Nassr. He was replaced as the starting striker by Gonçalo Ramos during the World Cup, with the Benfica youngster scoring a hat‑trick in a last‑16 win over Switzerland.
Veteran coach Fernando Santos stepped down after the tournament, and new boss Roberto Martínez has immediately put his faith in Ronaldo, who also captains the side. There were questions about whether his 20‑year international career had ended in Qatar, as Ronaldo will be 39 by the time Euro 2024 kicks off. Martínez, who left his role as Belgium coach after the World Cup, strongly defended his decision to keep Ronaldo in the squad. “I do not look at the age,” he said when announcing his first squad last week. The Spaniard added that his squad announcement was the “starting point” for Euro 2024, suggesting Ronaldo is likely to be involved if Portugal qualify.
Ronaldo adds the international appearance landmark to an impressive list of individual records. He is the leading goalscorer in European Championship finals with 14 goals and has netted a record 140 times in the Champions League. He has also finished as the top scorer in three of Europe’s top five leagues—England, Spain and Italy. Portugal will visit Luxembourg in their second Group J qualifier on Sunday and have also been drawn alongside Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland and Slovakia.
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