{
  "id": 18641796,
  "title": "Portugal coach ‘knew nothing’ about Ronaldo retiring",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/07/portugal-coach-knew-nothing-about-ronaldo-retiring",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-11-07T05:07:18.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Adom Online",
    "slug": "adom-online",
    "url": "https://www.adomonline.com/portugal-coach-knew-nothing-about-ronaldo-retiring/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Portugal coach Jorge Jesus revealed on Friday that he was unaware of Cristiano Ronaldo's retirement from international football until the news broke on social media. The 41-year-old Ronaldo announced his retirement via an Instagram video on Thursday, just a day before Jesus was scheduled to announce his squad for the upcoming Nations League fixtures. During a press conference, Jesus stated that Ronaldo did not give him any prior notice of his decision and that he was planning to select the forward, who had been in good form. Jesus emphasized that he had no knowledge of the decision until everyone else did.\n\nRonaldo had returned to international action after serving a 30-day suspension from duty, which did not involve any matches for the national team. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner had left the Portugal squad in September, reportedly because he would not start in a match against Denmark. Later, Ronaldo claimed that Jesus had \"broken his word,\" but acknowledged that his departure deserved punishment. At the time, Ronaldo had stated he would not be retiring from international football.\n\nJesus expressed annoyance at journalists' questions about his dispute with Ronaldo, stating that all his decisions were made with the team's best interests in mind. He maintained his peace with his decision. Ronaldo had been an unused substitute in Portugal's match against Norway on September 27, and his final international appearance was a 1-0 win over Wales on September 30, giving him a record of 146 goals in 234 games – both men's world records. Ronaldo also helped Portugal win Euro 2016 in 2016. Jesus did not contact Ronaldo since his announcement, but Pedro Proenca, the president of the Portuguese Football Federation, pledged to honor Ronaldo's contributions to Portuguese football. Proenca said that there was no tribute that could ever be enough to thank Ronaldo for everything he had done for the sport.",
  "summary": "Portugal coach Jorge Jesus said he “found out when we all did” about Cristiano Ronaldo’s retirement from international football. The 41-year-old made the announcement in an Instagram video on Thursday, the day before Jesus was due to announce his squad for this month’s Nations League fixtures. Speaking at Friday’s news conference, Jesus said that Ronaldo […]",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "BBC Sport",
        "title": "Portugal coach 'knew nothing' about Ronaldo retiring",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/06/portugal-coach-knew-nothing-about-ronaldo-retiring",
        "published": "2026-11-06T14:25:41.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}