Portugal Plan Squad-Wide No. 7 Tribute for Ronaldo

Portugal are preparing a send-off for Cristiano Ronaldo, whose international career is coming to an end after 23 years in the national team shirt. According to reports, every player in the squad will wear the No. 7 shirt that Ronaldo made famous when Portugal face Denmark, turning the team sheet into a tribute to the man who has carried the national side for more than two decades.

The gesture will also have a moment of its own on the pitch. The match is set to pause in the seventh minute so supporters can rise and applaud, a nod to the shirt number and a chance for the stadium to say thank you in one voice. For a country that has built much of its modern football identity around him, the timing feels right.

Ronaldo's numbers explain why the tribute is so large. He has scored 146 goals for Portugal, a total that places him among the most prolific players the international game has seen, and he has been the central figure in the country's rise to the top of European football. His career with the national team includes the 2016 European Championship triumph, the first major trophy in the country's history, and a long run of record-breaking performances that made him the face of a generation.

The planned tributes reflect how deeply he is woven into Portuguese football, both as a player and as a symbol of national ambition. Supporters and teammates alike will be watching closely to see how the ceremony unfolds, and whether it lives up to the reports.

Note that the details of the farewell come from reporting rather than an official team announcement, so the exact arrangements could still change before kick-off.