Portugal's national team will participate in the 2026 World Cup, to be held in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, and will seek to reach the final with their star player, Cristiano Ronaldo, who will be playing in his last World Cup. This will be Portugal's ninth appearance in the World Cup. Their best performance was third place in their debut at the 1966 World Cup in England, led by their star Eusébio. Now, with Cristiano Ronaldo (CR7), the team hopes to make a strong run and play in a World Cup final for the first time in their history. At the 1966 World Cup, Portugal topped Group 3 with a perfect record (6 points), eliminating the reigning world champions, Brazil. In the quarterfinals, they sensationally beat North Korea 5-3, but fell to the hosts, England, in the semifinals (1-2). They then defeated the Soviet Union (2-1) to claim third place. At the 1986 World Cup, after a 20-year absence, Portugal finished last in their group. At the 2002 World Cup, after another 16-year absence, the team again failed to advance from the group stage. At the 2006 World Cup, led by Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal achieved a strong fourth-place finish. They reached the semifinals, losing to France (0-1), and then lost to Germany (1-3) in the third-place playoff. At the 2010 World Cup, the team was eliminated in the round of 16 by eventual champions Spain (0-1). At the 2014 World Cup, Portugal was eliminated in the group stage. At the 2018 World Cup, Portugal was also knocked out in the round of 16 by Uruguay.
