Ronaldo was expected to part ways with Al-Nassr and join one of the clubs participating in the FIFA Club World Cup, including Saudi club Al-Hilal. The Portugal star, however, confirmed on Saturday that while he did receive ‘quite a few invitations’, he chose not to accept any of them.
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The drama surrounding Cristiano Ronaldo’s participation at the FIFA Club World Cup has come to an end with the Portuguese superstar ruling himself out of the 32-team tournament that gets underway in a week’s time. Ronaldo, whose future at Saudi Pro League club Al-Nassr also remains a matter of conjecture, added that he has received “quite a few” offers from clubs that will be in action at the Club World Cup but has decided against accepting any of them.
The move comes as a major blow to FIFA president Gianni Infantino, who was hopeful of having both Ronaldo and arch-rival Lionel Messi in action together to further boost the tournament’s popularity. Messi’s club Inter Miami qualified for the tournament by getting the host nation slot.
“Some things make sense to talk about, other things don’t, and, as a person says, you can’t take part in everything. You have to think about the short, medium and long term.
“It’s a decision practically made on my part not to go to the Club World Cup, but I’ve had quite a few invitations to go,” Ronaldo told reporters in Munich on the eve of the UEFA Nations League final between Portugal and Spain.
Ronaldo’s exit a major setback for FIFA
Infantino had suggested last month that Ronaldo, who is still contracted to Saudi team Al-Nassr until the end of June, could switch to one of the 32 clubs taking part in the Club World Cup because of a unique transfer window created for the tournament.
Ronaldo did little to quell that speculation when he posted “ this chapter is over ” after Al-Nassr’s last Saudi Pro League game of the season.
He was linked with several Club World Cup participants, including Brazil’s Palmeiras.
A switch to Al-Nassr’s crosstown rival Al-Hilal – the one Saudi club that qualified – was also mooted as a potential solution to having Ronaldo play at the tournament, where his great rival Lionel Messi will be playing with Inter Miami.
FIFA would have welcomed the boost that Ronaldo’s presence could provide for ticket sales, though such a switch to a bitter local rival for a short period would be unthinkable for players in Europe’s leagues.
Both Al-Nassr and Al-Hilal are among the four big Saudi clubs backed by the country’s Public Investment Fund, which has a 75 per cent stake in each. On Thursday, FIFA announced PIF as an “ official partner ” of the Club World Cup. Saudi state money is also effectively funding the tournament’s broadcasting deal that has largely backed its $1 billion prize fund being shared among the participants.
“This is irrelevant right now,” Ronaldo first said when asked Saturday about the Club World Cup. “It makes no sense to talk about anything other than the national team.”
Ronaldo fired Portugal into the Nations League final on Wednesday with a 2-1 win over host nation Germany.
His winning goal was his record-extending 137th for Portugal. If he plays Sunday he will make his record-extending 221st national team appearance.
With AP inputs
