Why is Cristiano Ronaldo not playing for Portugal vs Denmark in 2026-27 UEFA Nations League Matchday 5?

Portugal hosts Denmark on Saturday in Braga, in the fifth round of the Nations League, with a name missing from the team sheet that has been there for more than two decades: Cristiano Ronaldo.

The explanation is that Ronaldo is no longer part of the team. On Nov. 5, the 41-year-old announced his retirement from international soccer in a video alongside a short message: “Portugal will always be in me”. He leaves as the all-time leader in appearances and goals for his country, with 146 goals in 234 caps, after a career that began in August 2003.

His departure did not come in the best way. It followed weeks of tension with coach Jorge Jesus, which began in September when the coach left him on the bench during the Nations League win over Norway.

After that match, Ronaldo left the national team camp, explaining later that he felt the coach had not kept his word, and he was suspended for 30 days. When the retirement arrived, Jesus said he had tried to change his mind. “I asked him to continue with me because I needed him by my side, but I have to accept his decision,” the Portuguese coach explained.

Who will wear Portugal’s No. 7 now?

For now, the shirt will belong to Carlos Forbs. The 22-year-old Club Brugge winger appears with the No. 7 in the official match sheet against Denmark, and he will be the first player to wear it with the new design. The Portuguese Football Federation announced that, starting today, the No. 7 will have a new design in order to immortalize the one that Ronaldo wore for 23 years.

The young Portugal winger has one advantage: he is not a stranger to the number, as he already wore it in the 9-1 win over Armenia in 2025. Still, the assignment is expected to be temporary.

National teams must give each player a number from 1 to 23 in this competition, so someone had to take it, and Rafael Leao, who is injured for both matches of this window, is the player most likely to inherit it later.

Portugal now has to learn how to play without the player who defined the team for more than two decades, and the match in Braga will be the first answer. Between tributes for Ronaldo and a new name on the No. 7, the squad takes its first steps in a new chapter that begins without him on the pitch.