Portugal captain, Cristiano Ronaldo, on Thursday became the most capped men’s player in international football.
The 38-year-old made his 197th appearance against Liechtenstein in their Euro 2024 qualifying match on Thursday.
Ronaldo was denied the chance to break the record at the World Cup in Qatar as Portugal crashed out in the quarterfinals with a 1-0 defeat to Morocco.
The Al Nassr striker was tied with Kuwait’s Bader Al-Mutawa on 196 appearances before he was named in new Portugal boss Roberto Martinez’s first squad since taking charge of the Euro 2016 champions.
There were doubts over Ronaldo’s future on the international stage after he was omitted from the starting lineup for Portugal’s knockout matches in Qatar. His replacement, Benfica striker Goncalo Ramos, scored a hat trick in their 6-1 win over Switzerland in the round of 16. Ronaldo appeared as a substitute in both of his side’s knockout matches.
Ronaldo holds the men’s world record for most international goals with 118. He broke retired Iran striker Ali Daei’s 109-goal record in 2021 and has scored eight goals since, including one at the World Cup last year that made him the first men’s player to score at five separate World Cups.