Portugal World Cup schedule 2026: Dates, times, more to know for Cristiano Ronaldo team at FIFA men's soccer tournament

Cristiano Ronaldo will head once more into the breach as the evergreen forward contests what will surely be his final World Cup with Portugal.

Ronaldo is now 41 years old, but international soccer's all-time record goal-scorer retains his insatiable appetite for finding the back of the net.

This will be Ronaldo's sixth World Cup and it underlines his towering place in his nation's football history when we consider this will only be the Selecao's ninth appearance overall.

Ronaldo has played in five of those, although they have not done any better than the fourth place he helped them to in his first tournament back in 2006.

2026 WORLD CUP HQ: Latest World Cup news | Full World Cup schedule

Portugal World Cup 2026 schedule, results

Portugal were drawn into Group K, where their main challengers for top spot will be Colombia. Tournament debutants Uzbekistan and DR Congo complete the section.

World Cup 2026 Group K

Portugal Group K match schedule

Where to watch Portugal World Cup 2026 games

In the United States, the World Cup will be broadcast in English on Fox, with streaming options available via Fubo, who are offering a free trial.

Here is how you can watch the action across other major territories:

Portugal all-time World Cup groups

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Portugal World Cup snapshot

Roberto Martinez's side finished top of UEFA Group F to seal automatic qualification, although Ronaldo's red card in the defeat to the Republic of Ireland in Dublin meant he was at risk of missing the opening games of the group stage until FIFA’s reprieve.

Some observers might suggest that not having Ronaldo is no bad thing, with the more youthful talents of Joao Neves and Rafael Leao given room to author their own World Cup stories.

The 2026 tournament is also likely to be an emotional one for Portugal, as they compete for the greatest prize a year on from the tragic death of their forward Diogo Jota.

• Current FIFA world ranking: 5th
• Regional ranking: 4th (UEFA)
• World Cup titles: 0
• World Cup appearances (last): 8 (Qatar 2022)
• How qualified: UEFA Group F winners: 4W-1L-1D
• Coach: Roberto Martinez (Spain) since January 2023

Portugal World Cup 2026 preview

It would not be reasonable to ask Ronaldo, in his advancing years, to carry this Portugal team as he did during their Euro 2016 triumph a decade ago.

Thankfully for him, a magnificent generation of talent has emerged in the years since. Midfield options are particularly plentiful. Bruno Fernandes is coming off the season of his career at Manchester United, while Bernardo Silva left Manchester City last month as a modern Premier League great. It's impossible to imagine Paris Saint-Germain's back-to-back Champions League triumphs coming to pass without the sublime efforts of Vitinha and Joao Neves.

Nuno Mendes and Joao Cancelo lead an array of attacking full-back options, while a relative shortfall at centre-back is offset by the experienced Ruben Dias being fit again after a lay-off during the second half of last season.

Rafael Leao was pegged as Portuguese football's next superstar but has plateaued over the past couple of years at AC Milan. Not would be the perfect time to hit an upward trajectory once more as he and Pedro Neto provide the running power and goal threat either side of Ronaldo.

• Star Players: Cristiano Ronaldo, Vitinha, Bruno Fernandes 
• Players to Watch: Tomas Araujo, Francisco Conceicao

Portugal World Cup squad

Head coach Roberto Martinez has been noted for switching formations during his club and international career and frequently favoured a back three when in charge of Belgium.

The lack of central defensive depth, along with strengths elsewhere means variations around a 4-3-3 are likely to be hoe he approaches this competition.

Vitinha and Joao Neves providing a base for Bruno Fernandes to thrive in midfield is a mouthwatering prospect, Against stronger opponents, Bernardo Silva might be deployed on the right wing to provide greater control in possession.

Silva's intelligent and tireless pressing is also something Martinez will find particularly valuable given Ronaldo's understanably diminished out put off the ball.

Portugal predicted starting XI (formation: 4-3-3)

Costa (GK)

Cancelo, Dias, Araujo, Mendes

Fernandes, Vitinha, Joao Neves

Silva, Ronaldo, Leao

Strengths:

• Attacking fluidity: Ronaldo is the headline act but the array of talent around him is impressive. Neto and Leao are exceptional attacking wingers on their day. Goncalo Ramos provides a more orthodox centre-forward threat and netted a World Cup hat-trick against Switzerland last time around. Juventus youngster Francisco Conceicao and the mercurial Joao Felix can provide an x-factor off the bench.
   
• Midfield maestros: In terms of all-round midfield technicians, Vitinha, Joao Neves and Bernardo Silva would all feature on a top 10 in the world list right now. Then there is Fernandes, who has reached new heights since Michael Carrick tilted Manchester United away from psychodrama. He is simply an assist machine, which isn't a bad thing to have when your team also boasts a goals-obsessed centre-forward who contributes little outside the penalty area nowadays.
   
• Roving full-backs: Nuno Mendes has probably established himself as the best left-back in the world at Paris Saint-Germain. On the other side, Cancelo is lavishly gifted and frustrating in equal measure, but Diogo Dalot and the redeployed Matheus Nunes are each fine alternatives.

Weaknesses: 

• Centre-back: The one area where Portugal has regressed from the days of Pepe and Ricardo Carvalho. Ruben Dias is one of the best centre-backs in the world on form but comes into the tournament short on match action after suffering a hamstring injury in January, after which he did not regain his starting spot at Manchester City. The World Cup Group K subplot to this is the fantastic form of Uzbekistan youngster Abdukodir Khusanov was the main reason for Dias not coming back in. 
   
• Better without Ronaldo? Here's the thing: Ronaldo will definitely play. After he lost his spot during the previous World Cup, Martinez came in and made it his business to build Portugal around their star player's increasingly specific skillset. Still, the array of forward options in their playing prime elsewhere in the squad mean that if Ronaldo does not hit the ground running, plenty will wonder aloud whether he'd be better off on the bench.

Portugal roster for 2026 World Cup

Below is the confirmed list of 26 players for Portugal at the 2026 World Cup. Caps and stats are correct as of May 16.

Who is Portugal's head coach?

Martinez has spent the past decade working as an international goal, having taken charge of Belgium following their disappointing quarterfinal exit at Euro 2016. He led the Red Devils to third place at the 2018 World Cup and they were only beaten by eventual winners Italy at Euro 2020. Martinez's Belgium topped the FIFA rankings for three years during his time in charge but that did not translate at the 2022 World Cup, where they crashed out in the group stage.

Following that disappointment, Martinez jumped straight into the Portugal job. After quarterfinal run at Euro 2024, where the Selecao lost on penalties to France, they won a second UEFA Nations League title in the 2024/25 season, beating rivals Spain on spot kicks.

• Manager (Nationality): Roberto Martinez (Spain)
• Date hired: January 9, 2023
• Record as national team manager (W-L-D): 27-5-7
• Major titles since hire: UEFA Nations League 2024/25
• Notable victories: Portugal 3-0 Turkey (Euro 2024), Portugal 5-2 Denmark (Nations League 24/25), Germany 1-2 Portugal (Nations League 24/25)

Portugal World Cup qualifying results

Portugal topped UEFA Group F to qualify directly to the World Cup. They were top seeds, drawn alongside Hungary, Armenia and the Republic of Ireland and enjoyed a straightforward passage, with the exception of a 2-0 defeat to Ireland in Dublin, when Ronaldo was sent off

Portugal FIFA World Cup history

Portugal did not make thier first World Cup appearance until 1966, when the great Eusebio finished as the top scorer and inspired them to a third-place finish. A 20-year absence followed and Mexico 86 represented the first of four group-stage exits in their overall World Cup history.

The 2026 tournament will be Ronaldo's sixth appearance at the World Cup, meaning he has been present for two-thirds of his nation's total appearances.  The best of these was Cristiano's tournament debut in 2006, where the Selecao reached the semifinals in Germany before losing 1-0  to France.

• World Cups appearances: 9
• Best finish: Third (1966)
• All-time goals scored: 61
• All-time goals conceded: 41
• All-time record (W-L-D): 17-12-6