India, May 20 -- Cristiano Ronaldo's sixth World Cup will be read first as a record, because records have always followed him like weather. At 41, the Portuguese Superstar has been named in Roberto Martinez's squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, a tournament that can make him the first men's player to feature in six editions of football's biggest stage.

Portugal need that history to work as strategy. Martinez has not chosen a squad that looks trapped by the past. He has chosen one deep enough, flexible enough and modern enough to change the old Ronaldo equation. For almost two decades, Portugal often needed Ronaldo to carry their threat, their gravity and their tournament identity. In 2026, the strongest argument for taking him may be that...