Kasper Schmeichel: Will Be 'Really Difficult' For Cristiano Ronaldo To Retire

The career of one of the greatest players to ever step on the pitch, Portugal legend Cristiano Ronaldo, is likely nearing its end — and FOX Sports' Kasper Schmeichel, who was a goalkeeper for Denmark, thinks it will be hard for the 41-year-old to come to grips with that reality.

"I know exactly what he's feeling right now," Schmeichel said about Ronaldo after Portugal was eliminated from the 2026 World Cup by Spain on Monday. "It means everything to play for your country. Look at his body language. It hits you, and it hits you harder than you're ever going to expect.

"Even at his age, I don't care how many goals you scored or how many trophies you've got, that's not his mentality. His mentality is the next one. Wants to win, wants to keep going, wants to prove that he still is the best."

Ronaldo and Portugal advanced through Group K of the 2026 World Cup after going 1-2-0 in group play. Then, following a win over Croatia in the round of 32, they were eliminated by Lamine Yamal and Spain in the round of 16. Following Portugal's defeat, Ronaldo said this was his "last" World Cup but that he's still mulling his future in the sport elsewhere.

The 2026 World Cup marked the sixth such tournament Ronaldo played in for Portugal, with the club being unable to claim a tournament triumph in any of those six years (2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022 and 2026). Ronaldo scored three goals across Portugal's five matches this tournament, highlighted by a brace against Uzbekistan in the group stage. 

The superstar striker has 11 career World Cup goals and stands first all time with 976 career goals across a combined 1,326 games.

"I think, at the moment, Cristiano is realizing that he's not going to play in the World Cup again. Those stadiums,