Cristiano Ronaldo has been suspended for 30 days and fined €255 by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) for leaving the national team's camp in Copenhagen without permission. Because most of the ban has already been served provisionally, the 41-year-old captain is expected to be available again for Portugal's next matches in November.
Key points
- The FPF disciplinary council upheld the charge in full on October 19, 2026, finding Ronaldo guilty of an intentional offence under Article 160(1) of its disciplinary rules.
- The sanction is a 30-day suspension plus a fine of 2.5 units, or €255 (about £215).
- Portuguese outlet SAPO reports that 19 days were already served under a provisional suspension, leaving 11.
- Ronaldo left the camp on September 30, before Portugal's Nations League match in Denmark, after a rift with coach Jorge Jesus.
- He has apologised and said he remains available for selection.
What happened
According to the federation's ruling, quoted by SAPO, Ronaldo left the camp on September 30 before the official training session at the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen. He did not attend that session or the team dinner that evening. The ruling says he left in a car he requested from the national teams' services director and did not inform or explain his decision in advance to the FPF or the team management.
After leaving, he phoned FPF president Pedro Proença and told him he would not stay with the squad, saying he was not in the right state of mind to continue, the ruling states.
Reuters, via The Guardian, reports that the walkout followed a dispute with Jorge Jesus over Ronaldo's role. Ronaldo accused the coach of twice breaking his word about his role after he was an unused substitute against Norway. Jesus denied making any agreement with him but left the door open for his return.
What the ruling says
The disciplinary council's non-professional section found that Ronaldo "intentionally" committed the offence under Article 160(1) of the federation's disciplinary regulations, Reuters reported. Proceedings were opened on October 9, two days after the facts were reported.
The ruling lists 31 team activities that Ronaldo missed between the evening of September 30 and Portugal's home match against Norway on October 4, including training sessions, meals, team talks and the match in Denmark, SAPO reports.
Ronaldo asked for three mitigating factors to be applied. The FPF accepted two: his relevant services to football and his praise for sporting merit. It also noted that he had no disciplinary record in the current season or the previous three. It rejected a third, that he made a decisive contribution to establishing the facts, because most of the facts were already public.
Has he already served most of it?
Yes, according to SAPO, which reports that Ronaldo had already served 19 days of the sanction under a provisional suspension, leaving 11 days. That would make him available for Portugal's next squad, for Nations League matches against Denmark on November 14 and in Wales on November 17.
The Guardian noted that the federation's own statement did not specify which matches the suspension covered or whether provisional time counted, so supporters should watch for the official squad announcement.
Ronaldo's response
Ronaldo later apologised for failing to acknowledge supporters after the Norway match and for leaving his teammates, Reuters reported. He said he remained available for selection after serving any punishment. FPF president Pedro Proença has said everyone at the federation wants Ronaldo to return to the national team once the matter is resolved.
Why it matters
Ronaldo is Portugal's captain and all-time leading scorer, and his relationship with the national team has been one of the defining stories in European football for two decades. The ruling closes the disciplinary case without ending his international career. The open question now is sporting rather than legal: whether Jorge Jesus picks him in November, and what role he is offered if he does.
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