the

European

champion

2001–2007: Youth level and senior debut

Ronaldo began his international career with portugal under-15 in 2001. During his international youth career, Ronaldo would represent the under-15, under-17, under-20, under-21 and under-23 national sides, amassing 34 youth caps and scoring 18 goals overall. Aged 18, Ronaldo made his first senior appearance for portugal in a 1–0 win over Kazakhstan on 20 August 2003, coming on as a half-time substitute for Luís Figo.He was subsequently called up for UEFA Euro 2004, held in his home country, and scored his first international goal in a 2–1 group stage loss to eventual champions Greece, his eighth appearance for portugal. After converting his penalty in a shoot-out against England in the quarter-finals,[339] he helped portugal reach the final by scoring the opening goal in a 2–1 win over the Netherlands.He was featured in the team of the tournament, having provided two assists in addition to his two goals. Ronaldo was portugal's second-highest scorer in their qualification group for the 2006 FIFA World Cup with seven goals.During the tournament, he scored his first World Cup goal against Iran with a penalty kick in portugal's second match of the group stage. At the age of 21 years and 132 days, Ronaldo became the youngest ever goalscorer for portugal at a World Cup finals. In portugal's infamously dirty round of 16 match against the Netherlands, Ronaldo was forced off injured in the first half after a tackle from Dutch defender Khalid Boulahrouz. Following portugal's 1–0 win, Ronaldo accused Boulahrouz of intentionally trying to injure him, although he recovered in time to play in the next game. In portugal's quarter-final against England, Ronaldo's Manchester United teammate Wayne Rooney was sent off for stamping on portugal defender Ricardo Carvalho. Although the referee later clarified that the red card was only due to Rooney's infraction,the English media speculated that Ronaldo had influenced his decision by aggressively complaining, after which he was seen in replays winking at portugal's bench following Rooney's dismissal.Ronaldo went on to score the vital winning penalty during the shoot-out which sent portugal into the semi-finals.Ronaldo was subsequently booed during their 1–0 semi-final defeat to France.FIFA's Technical Study Group overlooked him for the tournament's Best Young player award and handed it to Germany's Lukas podolski, citing his behaviour as a factor in the decision.Following the 2006 World Cup, Ronaldo would go on to represent portugal in four qualifying games for Euro 2008, scoring two goals in the process.

2007–2012: Assuming the captaincy

One day after turning 22, Ronaldo captained portugal for the first time in a friendly game against Brazil on 6 February 2007, as requested by portuguese Football Federation (FpF) president Carlos Silva, who had died two days earlier.Ahead of Euro 2008, he was given the number 7 shirt for the first time. While he scored eight goals in qualifications, the second-highest tally, he scored just one goal in the tournament, netting the second goal of their 3–1 win in the group stage match against the Czech Republic. In the same game, he also set-up portugal's third goal in injury time, which was scored by Quaresma, and was named man of the match for his performance.portugal were eliminated in the quarter-finals with a 3–2 loss against eventual finalists Germany. After portugal's unsuccessful performance at Euro 2008, Luiz Felipe Scolari was replaced as coach by Carlos Queiroz, formerly the assistant manager at United. Queiroz made Ronaldo the squad's permanent captain in July 2008.Ronaldo failed to score a single goal in the qualification for the 2010 World Cup, as portugal narrowly avoided a premature elimination from the tournament with a play-off victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the group stage of the World Cup, he was named man of the match in all three matches, against Ivory Coast, North Korea and Brazil. His only goal of the tournament came in their 7–0 rout of North Korea, which marked his first international goal in 16 months. portugal's World Cup ended with a 1–0 loss against eventual champions Spain in the round of 16. Ronaldo scored seven goals in qualifications for Euro 2012, including two strikes against Bosnia and Herzegovina in the play-offs, to send portugal into the tournament, where they were drawn in a "group of death".In the last group stage game against the Netherlands, Ronaldo scored twice to secure a 2–1 win. He scored a header in the quarter-final against the Czech Republic to give his team a 1–0 win In both games against the Netherlands and the Czech Republic he was named man of the match.After the semi-finals against Spain ended scoreless, portugal were eliminated in the penalty shoot-out.Ronaldo did not take a penalty as he had been slated to take the unused fifth slot. Ronaldo's own teammate, Nani, said that Ronaldo "demanded" to take the last penalty. As the joint top scorer with three goals, alongside five other players, he was again included in the team of the tournament.

2012–2016: All-time portugal top scorer and European champion

During the qualification for the 2014 World Cup, Ronaldo scored a total of eight goals. A qualifying match on 17 October 2012, a 1–1 draw against Northern Ireland, earned him his 100th cap.His first international hat-trick also came against Northern Ireland, when he scored three times in a 15-minute spell of a 4–2 qualifying win on 6 September 2013. After portugal failed to qualify during the regular campaign, Ronaldo scored all four of the team's goals in the play-offs against Sweden, billed as a battle between Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimović, which ensured their place at the tournament.His hat-trick in the second leg took his international tally to 47 goals, equaling pauleta's record. Ronaldo subsequently scored twice in a 5–1 friendly win over Cameroon on 5 March 2014 to become his country's all-time top scorer. Ronaldo took part in the tournament despite suffering from patellar tendinitis and a related thigh injury,potentially risking his career. Ronaldo later commented: "If we had two or three Cristiano Ronaldos in the team I would feel more comfortable. But we don't.Despite ongoing doubts over his fitness, being forced to abort practice twice,Ronaldo played the full 90 minutes of the opening match against Germany, although he was unable to prevent a 4–0 defeat. After assisting an injury-time 2–2 equaliser against the United States, he scored a late match-winning goal in a 2–1 win over Ghana. His 50th international goal made him the first portuguese to play and score in three World Cups.portugal were eliminated from the tournament at the close of the group stage on goal difference.Ronaldo scored five goals, including a hat-trick against Armenia, in the qualification for Euro 2016.With the only goal in another win over Armenia on 14 November 2014, he reached 23 goals in the UEFA European Championship, including qualifying matches, to become the competition's all-time leading goalscorer.At the start of the tournament, Ronaldo failed to convert his chances in portugal's draws against Iceland and Austria, despite taking 20 shots on goal. In the latter match, he overtook Figo as portugal's most capped player with his 128th international appearance, which ended scoreless after he missed a penalty in the second half. With two goals in the last match of the group stage, a 3–3 draw against Hungary, Ronaldo became the first player to score in four European Championships, having made a record 17 appearances in the tournament.Although placed third in their group behind Hungary and Iceland, his team qualified for the knockout round as a result of the competition's newly expanded format, despite not winning any of their games. In portugal's first knockout match, Ronaldo's only attempt on goal was parried by Croatia's goalkeeper Danijel Subašić into the path of Ricardo Quaresma, whose finish then secured a 1–0 win late in extra time. After his team progressed past poland on penalties, with Ronaldo scoring portugal's opening penalty,[338] he became the first player to participate in three European Championship semi-finals;he scored the opener in a 2–0 win against Wales, equalling Michel platini as the competition's all-time top scorer with nine goals.In the final against hosts France, Ronaldo was forced off after just 25 minutes following a challenge from Dimitri payet, despite multiple treatments and attempts to play on, he was stretchered off the pitch and replaced by Quaresma. During extra time, substitute Eder scored in the 109th minute to earn portugal a 1–0 victory. As team captain, Ronaldo lifted the trophy in celebration of his country's first triumph in a major tournament. He was awarded the Silver Boot as the joint second-highest goalscorer, with three goals and three assists, and was named to the team of the tournament for the third time in his career.

2016–2018: Post-European Championship victory and World Cup

Following the Euro 2016 success, Ronaldo played his first professional match on his home island of Madeira on 28 March 2017 at age 32, opening a 2–3 friendly defeat to Sweden at the Estádio dos Barreiros. With the goal, he tied with Miroslav Klose on 71 goals as the third-highest scoring European in international football. In Portugal's opening match of the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup against Mexico on 17 June, Ronaldo set up Quaresma's opening goal in a 2–2 draw. Three days later, he scored in a 1–0 win over hosts Russia.On 24 June, he scored from a penalty in a 4–0 win over New Zealand, which saw Portugal top their group and advance to the semi-finals of the competition; with his 75th international goal, Ronaldo also equalled Sándor Kocsis as the second-highest European international goalscorer of all time, behind only Ferenc Puskás. He was named man of the match in all three of Portugal's group stage matches.Ronaldo left the competition early; after Chile defeated Portugal 3–0 on penalties in the semi-finals, he was allowed to return home to be with his newborn children,and missed Portugal's third-place play-off match in which Portugal defeated Mexico 2–1 after extra time.On 31 August 2017, Ronaldo scored a hat-trick in a 5–1 win in a 2018 World Cup qualifying match over the Faroe Islands, which saw him overtake Pelé and equal Hussein Saeed as the joint-fifth-highest goalscorer in international football with 78 goals.These goals brought his tally in the World Cup qualifiers to 14, equalling Predrag Mijatović's record for most goals in a single UEFA qualifying campaign, and also saw him break the record for the most goals scored in a European qualifying group, overtaking the previous record of 13 goals set by David Healy and Robert Lewandowski. Ronaldo's hat-trick took his World Cup qualifying goals total to 29, making him the highest scorer in UEFA qualifiers, ahead of Andriy Shevchenko, and the highest goalscorer in World Cup qualifying and finals matches combined with 32 goals, ahead of Miroslav Klose.Ronaldo later added to this tally by scoring a goal against Andorra in a 2–0 win. On 15 June 2018, Ronaldo became the oldest player to score a hat-trick in a FIFA World Cup match, helping Portugal secure a 3–3 draw against Spain (his third goal a 30-yard curling free kick with two minutes remaining) in their opening match. In doing so, he became the first Portuguese player to score a goal in four World Cups and one of four players of any nationality to do so. On 20 June, Ronaldo scored the only goal in a 1–0 win against Morocco, breaking Puskás' record as the highest European goalscorer of all time, with 85 international goals. In the final group match against Iran on 25 June, Ronaldo missed a penalty in an eventual 1–1 draw which saw Portugal progress to the second round as group runners-up behind Spain. On 30 June, Portugal were eliminated following a 2–1 defeat to Uruguay in the last 16. For his performances in the tournament, Ronaldo was named in the World Cup Dream Team.

2018–2020: Nations League title and 100 international goals

After the World Cup, Ronaldo missed six international matches, including the entire league phase of the 2018–19 UEFA Nations League, but played for hosts Portugal in the inaugural Nations League Finals in June 2019. In the semi-finals on 5 June, he scored a hat-trick against Switzerland to reach the final. Upon scoring the opening goal, he became the first player to score in 10 consecutive international competitions, breaking the record he previously shared with Ghana's Asamoah Gyan. In the final of the tournament four days later, Portugal defeated the Netherlands 1–0. On 10 September 2019, Ronaldo scored four goals in a 5–1 away win over Lithuania in a Euro 2020 qualifying match; in the process, he overtook Robbie Keane (23 goals) as the player with most goals in the UEFA European Championship qualifying, setting a new record with 25 goals.[416] He also set a new record for scoring against the most national teams, 40, while also completing his eighth international hat-trick. On 14 October, he scored his 700th senior career goal for club and country from the penalty spot, in his 974th senior career appearance, a 2–1 away loss to Ukraine in a Euro 2020 qualifier. On 17 November, Ronaldo scored his 99th international goal in a 2–0 win over Luxembourg, leading Portugal to qualify for Euro 2020.On 8 September 2020, Ronaldo scored his 100th and 101st international goals in a 2–0 away win over Sweden in a 2020–21 UEFA Nations League match, becoming only the second male player ever to achieve this milestone (after Ali Daei of Iran) and the first in Europe. On 13 October, the FPF announced that Ronaldo tested positive for COVID-19 while being asymptomatic. By 30 October, Ronaldo had recovered.

2021–present: All-time international appearances and top goalscorer

On 15 June 2021, Ronaldo scored twice in Portugal's first game of Euro 2020, a 3–0 win against Hungary in Budapest. This took him to a total of 11 European Championship goals, two clear of Michel Platini, as the all-time top goalscorer in the competition's history. He also became the first player to score at five Euros,and in eleven consecutive tournaments. The brace made Ronaldo the oldest player to score two goals in a match in the competition,and the oldest player to score for Portugal at a major tournament. On 23 June, he scored two penalties in Portugal's 2–2 draw with France in their final group stage match, equalling Daei's record of 109 international goals.On 27 June, Portugal were eliminated following a 1–0 loss against Belgium in the round of 16.Ronaldo finished the tournament with five goals (tied with Czech Patrik Schick) and one assist, earning him the Golden Boot. On 1 September, Ronaldo scored two headed goals, with his second coming seconds before the full-time whistle, in a 2–1 home win against the Republic of Ireland in a World Cup qualifier at the Estádio Algarve, which saw him pass Ali Daei to become the sole record holder by breaking the men's international scoring record with his 110th and 111th international goals. On 9 October, he scored the opening goal in a 3–0 friendly win over Qatar at the Estádio Algarve; with his 181st international appearance, he also overtook Sergio Ramos's record for the most international caps received by a European player. In the following match against Luxembourg on 12 October, also played at the Estádio Algarve, Ronaldo scored a hat-trick in a 5–0 win for Portugal, and became the first player to score 10 hat-tricks in men's international football.Ronaldo was named in Portugal's squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, making it his fifth World Cup. On 24 November, in Portugal's opening match against Ghana, Ronaldo scored a penalty kick and became the first male player to score in five different World Cups. In the last group game against South Korea, Ronaldo received criticism from his own coach for his reaction at being substituted. He was dropped from the starting line-up for Portugal's last 16 match against Switzerland, marking the first time since Euro 2008 that he had not started a game for Portugal in a major international tournament, and the first time Portugal had started a knockout game without Ronaldo in the starting line-up at an international tournament since Euro 2000. He came off the bench late on as Portugal won 6–1, their highest tally in a World Cup knockout game since the 1966 World Cup, with Ronaldo's replacement Gonçalo Ramos scoring a hat-trick.Portugal employed the same strategy in the quarter-finals against Morocco, with Ronaldo once again coming off the bench; in the process, he equalled Bader Al-Mutawa's international appearance record, becoming the joint–most capped male footballer of all time, with 196 caps. Portugal lost 1–0, with Morocco becoming the first CAF nation ever to reach the World Cup semi-finals. Following the World Cup, despite having his future with the national team in doubt, after rumours of a possible omission by new manager Roberto Martínez, Ronaldo was named in Portugal's squad for the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifiers against Liechtenstein and Luxembourg.On 23 March, Ronaldo scored a brace in a 4–0 win over Liechtenstein; with his 197th international appearance, he overtook Al-Mutawa's record and became the most capped male footballer of all time.