Cristiano Ronaldo scored two goals, leading Portugal to a perfect start to the 2026 World Cup qualifiers with a 5-0 victory over Armenia at the latter’s stadium.
This match was historic for Ronaldo, as he became the first European player in history to participate in six World Cup qualifiers, starting with his participation with Portugal in the 2004 World Cup qualifiers against Latvia, and continuing through the 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, and now 2026, at the age of 40.
The Don completed the historic match by scoring two goals, one of which was world-class by any standard, to reach the 140th international goal of his career, moving further ahead as the all-time top scorer for national teams.
كريستيانو رونالدو يسجل هدفاً رائعاً في شباك أرمينيا 😮🥅
تمكن نجم النصر السعودي كريستيانو رونالدو من تسجيل الهدف الثاني للمنتخب البرتغالي في شباك أرمينيا في الدقيقة 21 وكان الراحل جوتا يرتدي القميص رقم 21 مع منتخب بلاده.#تصفيات_كأس_العالم | #البرتغال_أرمينيا pic.twitter.com/1RodXv0LZl
— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS) September 6, 2025
Ronaldo’s total goals in his career, both for club and country, have reached 942, continuing his journey towards scoring 1,000 goals before retiring, despite the seemingly great difficulty of achieving this goal within a year or two.
Perhaps Ronaldo’s most notable achievement is that he now surpasses Lionel Messi in the total number of goals scored in World Cup qualifiers. The Portuguese has scored 38 goals for his country, compared to just 36 for Argentina.
Ronaldo is now one goal away from becoming the all-time leading scorer in World Cup qualifiers across all continents, with Guatemalan Carlos Ruiz holding the record with 39 goals.
It’s worth noting that Ronaldo has scored in his last four official matches for Portugal in various tournaments, scoring against Denmark, Germany, and Spain in the UEFA Nations League, and now against Armenia.
It’s worth noting that Portugal will play another match during the current international break, against Hungary next Wednesday in Lisbon.
