Can Portugal Prove They Are More Than Ronaldo FC With a Run to World Cup Glory?

Cristiano Ronaldo will play at a sixth FIFA World Cup this summer, but Portugal’s chances of success lie with their many other exceptional forwards.

When you think of Portugal, you think of Cristiano Ronaldo.

The Madeira-born footballing behemoth dominates the conversation with whatever he does on and off the football pitch. So much of the chat surrounding the Seleção revolves around the 41-year-old, who is set to appear at his sixth – and final – World Cup this summer, that you could be forgiven for not appreciating the full strength of this Portugal team.

But make no mistake, this is not Ronaldo FC, but instead Portugal travel to the Americas brimming with elite talent and as a serious contender to deliver the first World Cup in the country’s history. At the time of writing, the Opta supercomputer gives only Spain (16.0%), France (12.9%), England (10.8%) and Argentina (10.0%) a greater chance of winning football’s biggest prize than the Seleção (7.1%).

This will be Portugal’s ninth appearance at the World Cup and seventh in a row, dating back to the 2002 tournament, which was their first appearance on the biggest stage since 1986. You have to go back to the 1966 World Cup, however, for the last time Portugal made it as far as the semi-finals, when the nation, led by goalscoring extraordinaire Eusébio, lost 2-1 to eventual winners England.

In more recent years, the World Cup has been a stage on which Portugal have ultimately disappointed. Their Euro 2016 triumph, for example, the first major honour in the nation’s history, was bookended by a World Cup group stage exit in 2014 and a round-of-16 departure in 2018.

So, why could this World Cup be any different?

An Elite Midfield

In the form of Bruno Fernandes, Vitinha, João Neves, Bernardo Silva, Rúben Neves and Samú Costa, Portugal may have the best group of midfielders to choose from of any side at the World Cup.

Fernandes comes into the tournament fresh off his most productive Premier League campaign for Manchester United (nine goals, 21 assists), leading the top flight for chances created (136) and breaking the Premier League record for most assists in a single campaign, edging past Thierry Henry (20 in 2002-03) and Kevin de Bruyne (20 in 2019-20).

Fernandes has at times has struggled to translate his talismanic club form onto the international stage, but he has gone from strength to strength for his nation in recent years. In Portugal’s final World Cup qualifying match, a 9-1 rout of Armenia, Fernandes ran the show, scoring a hat-trick and creating eight chances. Across Portugal’s last two friendlies, a 2-0 win over USA in April and a 2-1 win against Chile last Saturday, Fernandes has been involved in three goals, assisting both against the US before scoring what proved to be the winner against Chile.

He also led Portugal in World Cup qualifying for chances created, with 21, which was 10 more than any other player. Manager Roberto Martínez will be hoping Fernandes can take this form into the World Cup and continue to lead the supply line.

Operating behind Fernandes in the Portugal midfield is another world-class talent in Vitinha, the man who finished third in the most recent Ballon d’Or rankings behind Ousmane Dembélé and Lamine Yamal, providing the beating heart of his club side, back-to-back European champions, Paris Saint-Germain.

The 26-year-old is someone who impacts the game both with and without the ball. He can dictate the tempo and rhythm of a game, slowing it down or speeding it up when necessary, a skill that could prove crucial to success at the upcoming tournament given the issues surrounding the heat and humidity.

The former Porto man provided 11 assists this season across all competitions, with only Kvicha Kvaratskhelia and Ousmane Dembélé providing more for PSG (12), while he was named the official Player of the Match in the Champions League final against Arsenal after an outstanding performance that saw him complete the most passes (141), passes in the opposition half (75) and have the most touches (162). Of all players at clubs in Europe’s top five leagues in 2025-26, Vitinha completed the most passes (5,234) and completed the most passes in the opposition’s half (3,001).

Getting Into Their Attacking Groove

The appointment of Martínez back in 2023 raised some eyebrows among supporters, who may have considered his achievements with Belgium’s golden generation underwhelming.

But in choosing the Spaniard, there was clearly a desire to move Portugal away from the football of his predecessor, Fernando Santos, the man who delivered the Euro 2016 title with a somewhat laborious and predictable playing style. The aim has been to make Portugal into a more fluid, free-flowing team that makes better use of the attacking talent available to them and is capable of outscoring the opposition.

Fast-forward to the present day, and Portugal have scored exactly 100 goals under Martínez in just 39 matches (2.6 goals per game), with only Santos (226 goals in 109 games, a rate of 2.1 goals per game), Luiz Felipe Scolari (144 goals in 73 games; 2.0 per game) and António Oliveira (102 goals in 44 games; 2.3 per game) overseeing more goals in total while charge of Portugal.

In their only other major tournament under Martínez, Euro 2024, Portugal were eliminated by France in the quarter-final on penalties following a goalless draw. Since then, they have dusted themselves off brilliantly, claiming a second UEFA Nations League title, a run that included a 2-1 victory over Germany in the semi-final and a win on penalties in the final against Spain following a 2-2 draw.

Whatever your beliefs are regarding the (lack of) prestige or importance of the Nations League, these victories against other giants of European football still served to increase confidence among the Portuguese squad that they can not only go toe-to-toe with the elite, but that they can come out on top.

In World Cup qualifying, Portugal attempted 25 shots per match, the most of any European nation, while their 8.3 shots on target per match was only bettered by Spain (9.6) and Croatia (8.5). Portugal scored the most goals following a high turnover per match (0.5) and only Belgium (2.5) had more shots resulting from a high turnover per match than them (2.3).

Ronaldo netted five goals in qualifying, two more than any other Portugal player, while his 31 shots, 12 shots on target and 5.73 xG were also unsurprisingly the most of anyone for the Seleção. But if Portugal are to perform well at the tournament, the supporting cast in attack will need to step up and contribute.

In addition to Ronaldo, Martínez has called up João Félix, Trincão, Francisco Conceição, Pedro Neto, Rafael Leão, Gonçalo Guedes and Gonçalo Ramos in attack, all of whom can produce moments of quality in front of goal.

In João Félix, Portugal have something of a wildcard who can make the difference in the final third. A player who after several years of turbulence that involved two separate moves to Chelsea, a loan to Barcelona and a loan to AC Milan, is finally high on confidence and performing consistently following since his move to Saudi Pro League outfit Al Nassr.

The 26-year-old was recently awarded the Player of the Season award, pipping teammate Ronaldo in the process, thanks to his 20 goals and 13 assists in 33 league games. If he can continue his good rhythm going into the tournament, he could have a big impact for his nation.

Clearly, the Seleção have the quality to go far in this tournament. The question is whether Martínez can harness the best of it to prove Portugal this team has so much more to them than their star man.

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