Cristiano Ronaldo’s future: the 40-year-old declines a chance to join the Club World Cup team this summer

Thiago Silva, a former defender for Chelsea, AC Milan, and Paris Saint-Germain, currently plays for the Brazilian team, which earned a spot in the tournament thanks to their Copa Libertadores victory in 2023.

Ronaldo declined the club’s bold attempt to sign the 40-year-old in time for the tournament, so Fluminense will not have him in their squad when they play Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan Hyundai, and Mamelodi Sundowns in the USA this summer.

Ronaldo is currently not playing for the Club World Club after the Saudi team failed to qualify because of their poor AFC Champions League performances, and it appears likely that he will leave Al-Nassr this summer.

Gianni Infantino, the president of FIFA, has been making every effort to persuade one of the 32 participating clubs to sign Ronaldo, but it appears that no deal will be completed in time for the competition to start next week.

The Public Investment Fund, which oversees Saudi Arabia’s finances, was allegedly trying to orchestrate a move for Ronaldo to Al-Hilal, who will play at the Club World Club, although Al-Nassr is still in negotiations to extend the veteran forward’s contract.

However, the club’s board quickly acted against the move, making any transfer to Al-Hilal seem unlikely. Ronaldo’s future is still very much in doubt.

Fluminense made an informal request to see if the Portuguese legend would join the team, and another club threw their hat into the ring by offering Ronaldo a chance to play at the competition.

Mario Bittencourt, the club’s president, has publicly stated that he spoke with Ronaldo’s agent Jorge Mendes to ask about his client’s future.

However, Mendes and Ronaldo rejected the question, and the player stated that he had no desire to relocate to Brazil.

Bittencourt publicly stated, “I have a relationship with Jorge,” in response to the rumors. He’s not very close, but he answers the phone when I call him.

“I asked him if there was any chance of Cristiano playing in the Club World Cup [for Fluminense], but he was very clear in telling me that he’s not interested in playing in Brazil for now.”

Ronaldo is still a regular at the international level despite being in his 40s and relocating to Saudi Arabia. This week, he will play for Portugal when they play Germany in the UEFA Nations League semifinals on Wednesday night.