Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo has become the most capped men's player in international football after making his 197th Portugal appearance on Thursday.

He scored his first international goal during a Euro 2004 group stage game against Greece 10 months later. Ronaldo appeared as a substitute in both of his side's knockout matches. [Benfica](/soccer/team?id=1929) striker [Goncalo Ramos](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/288896/Goncalo-Ramos), scored a hat trick in their 6-1 win over [Switzerland](/soccer/team?id=475) in the round of 16.

Cristiano Ronaldo broke the record for the highest number of international appearances, scoring twice on his 197th cap for Portugal.

Two other teams in Group C met in Skopje, with North Macedonia beating Malta 2-1. [became England’s all-time record scorer](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2023/mar/23/italy-england-euro-2024-qualifying-group-c-match-report) as Gareth Southgate’s side started their qualifying campaign with a 2-1 win at the home of Euro 2020 champions Italy. [Portugal](https://www.theguardian.com/football/portugal) in European Championship qualifying group J.

Cristiano Ronaldo broke the men's international appearance record on Thursday by starting Portugal's Euro 2024 qualifier against Liechtenstein.

The Spaniard added his squad announcement was the "starting point" for Euro 2024, suggesting Ronaldo is likely to be involved if Portugal qualify for the tournament. But Martinez, who left his role as Belgium coach after the World Cup, has strongly defended his decision to keep Ronaldo in the fold. [goals](https://www.france24.com/en/tag/football/) in 10 matches for Al Nassr. [Portuguese](https://www.france24.com/en/tag/portugal/) starting XI during the World Cup in Qatar last year, won a 197th cap for his country. Ronaldo made his international debut in 2003 and became the first man to score in five World Cups last year before Portugal lost to Morocco in the quarter-finals. [playing for Saudi club Al Nassr](https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20221230-🔴-portugal-s-cristiano-ronaldo-signs-for-al-nassr-football-club-in-saudi-arabia) after an acrimonious end to his second spell at [Manchester United](https://www.france24.com/en/tag/manchester-united/).

A Cristiano Ronaldo brace, as well as goals from Joao Cancelo and Bernardo Silva, gave Portugal an easy win over Liechtenstein to open Euro 2024 qualifying.

Ronaldo provided the third, tucking a penalty into the bottom corner after Joao Cancelo was tripped inside the box. The captain added the fourth after an hour, blasting a free-kick off Buchel's palms and into the top corner, to round off a near-perfect start to his side's qualifying campaign. They grabbed a second shortly after the half, Bernardo Silva lashing a shot through a crowd of bodies and past a helpless Buchel.

Cristiano Ronaldo sets a new record for most games played in men's international soccer after being selected to start for Portugal against Liechtenstein.

Cristiano Ronaldo a établi un nouveau record mondial de sélections en équipe nationale masculine en disputant son 197e match avec le Portugal face au ...

Cristiano Ronaldo a signé son premier but international face à la Grèce, en ouverture de l’Euro-2004 organisé au Portugal. Il a remporté les deux premiers trophées majeurs de l’histoire de son pays : l’Euro-2016 et la Ligue des nations 2019. CR7 a honoré sa première cape le 20 août 2003, à 18 ans, 6 mois et 15 jours, en entrant en jeu lors d’un match amical face au Kazakhstan.