Cristiano Ronaldo

<ul><li><p>Al-Nassr and Portugal forward expects to retire soon</p></li><li><p>Ronaldo has more than 950 goals for club and country</p></li></ul><p>Cristiano Ronaldo believes this year is “probably” his last as a professional footballer, the 41-year-old Portugal captain said in an interview with Vogue magazine published on Sunday.</p><p>Ronaldo, who has established his place among football’s all-time greats with more than 950 goals for club and country, had previously spoken of retiring “soon” or within “one or two years”.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/aug/16/cristiano-ronaldo-says-this-year-is-probably-his-last-as-a-footballer">Continue reading...</a>

<p>The Australian has become Al-Nassr’s 12th coach of the 2020s and while taking over a star-studded squad may seem a comfortable gig, it will be anything but in the Saudi Pro League</p><p>When Ange Postecoglou <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/oct/18/ange-postecoglou-sacked-by-nottingham-forest-after-40-days-as-head-coach">left Nottingham Forest in October</a>, few would have predicted his next port of call would be Riyadh, but <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/jul/03/ange-postecoglou-head-coach-al-nassr-cristiano-ronaldo">taking over Al-Nassr</a> is likely to be one of the biggest challenges of his varied career. This is a coach who always wins something in his second season but there is little chance of a second season if there is no trophy in the first. The fact that he is the club’s 12th coach in the 2020s alone is a stark reminder that failure is not an option, and the financial issues that have meant a quiet summer in the transfer market won’t b

<p>As Ronaldo heads towards 1,000 career goals, the league plans to lift the standard of Saudi Arabian football, not just the clubs</p><p>There is no Mohamed Salah in the new Saudi Pro League season that kicks off on Thursday and while the era of the ageing megastar is ending, there is still the strong chance the next few months will be dominated by Cristiano Ronaldo. The 41-year-old is 24 shy of 1,000 career goals and, with the five-time Ballon d’Or winner having scored 102 in 107 league games for Al-Nassr, the milestone could – should – be reached this season.</p><p>Huge as that will be, just how it fits into the plans of the league is unclear. This is the fourth season since the spending started with $957m splashed out in the summer of 2023. It produced thousands of articles, dozens of international broadcasting deals and untold numbers of people worldwide sporting the yellow CR7 Al-Nassr shirt. Now, though, the focus is on getting a little more value for money and lifting not just

<p>This was a good rather than great World Cup on the field. In the background, things were a lot less edifying</p><p>Perhaps it’s too early, with the shreds of gold tape still fluttering through the New Jersey sky, to make a proper assessment. That will only come when everything has sunk in properly, when memories have had the chance to settle and shape themselves, when the consequences of certain events have become clear. But let’s try anyway to make some sort of assessment of where the World Cup that ended with <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/jul/20/lionel-messis-world-cup-fairytale-ends-with-pitiful-argentina-as-final-villains">Leandro Paredes grappling with Gavi</a> ranks historically.</p><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/jul/05/folarin-balogun-red-card-suspension-lifted-usmnt-belgium-world-cup">The Balogun Affair</a> could yet have major consequences. At the moment, it feels that the world has moved on, but that’s the nature of tournaments.

Here's how Lamine Yamal's latest World Cup win stacks up among soccer's youngest-ever winners.

<ul><li><p>Former Tottenham manager signs two-year contract</p></li><li><p>Al-Nassr won the Saudi Pro League last season</p></li></ul><p>Ange Postecoglou has been appointed as the new head coach of the Saudi Pro League champions, ⁠Al-Nassr, on a two-year deal as the Australian attempts ⁠to revive his ⁠career ​after two bruising stints in the Premier League.</p><p>“A new chapter. Mr Ange Postecoglou appointed as ⁠head coach of the Al-Nassr first team. The contract spans two seasons,” the club said in a statement. “We ⁠wish him and his staff every success in their journey.”</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/jul/03/ange-postecoglou-head-coach-al-nassr-cristiano-ronaldo">Continue reading...</a>