Cristiano Ronaldo is preparing for his sixth World Cup as if it were his first, said Portugal coach Roberto Martinez as he hailed the 41-year-old as “an example and a reference for football.”

Armed with a richly talented generation, Portugal are among the favourites to win the World Cup for the first time.

Ronaldo’s continued presence in Martinez’s team has sparked debate over whether he is still a positive influence.

No one can match the five-time Ballon d’Or winner’s 143 international goals. But he has failed to net in his last nine matches at major tournaments and offers little in a defensive role when the opposition are in possession.

Martinez, though, has no doubt he remains Portugal’s best option up front.

“He is an example and a reference for football. For all those children on the street who begin to feel the love for sport, following the example of Cristiano Ronaldo is wonderful,” Martinez told a press conference ahead of Portugal’s World Cup opener against DR Congo.

“It is his sixth World Cup, but I can say that internally it seems to be his first World Cup in terms of intensity, in terms of emotional output, of how important it is for him to be prepared to lead the group.”

“Within the team he is a vital player because he is the finisher, he is the player in the penalty area, he is the player who has those movements that can open spaces for other players. Within our attacking game, his numbers reflect the importance he has.”

Bruno Fernandes said his first experience of a major tournament as a child came on home soil, when a 19-year-old Ronaldo helped Portugal reach the final of Euro 2004.

“All of us in this national team we have grown up watching Cristiano Ronaldo play and for us it’s such an honour to play next to him now in the same team,” said the Manchester United captain.

“We’re all here to support him and to support Portugal to go as far as possible.”

‘Dreaming not forbidden’

Fresh from winning Premier League player of the year accolades, Fernandes is part of one of the strongest midfields in the World Cup.

Vitinha and Joao Neves have recently won a second consecutive Champions League with Paris Saint-Germain, while Bernardo Silva is set to join Real Madrid after a trophy-laden nine years at Manchester City.

“We have a very strong team, great individual quality, and beyond the individual quality and the strengths that we have as individual players, I think we are a very cohesive team, a very united team,” added Fernandes.

“Obviously our dream is to be there (winning the World Cup) and I think that dreaming is not forbidden.”

Portugal will also face tournament debutants Uzbekistan and Colombia in Group K.

Martinez, though, warned against looking beyond DR Congo after the shock Spain suffered in being held 0-0 by Cape Verde in their opening match.

“We’ve got very little to win tomorrow from the outside. If you win against Congo, it’s expected. If you win by one, it’s a big problem. If you draw, it’s a catastrophe. If you lose, this is the end of the world,” said the Spaniard.

“They come with no expectations, they are enjoying being here. We’ve seen incredible performances from teams like Qatar, Cape Verde, exemplary performances, that shows you that there are no easy games in a World Cup.”

Martinez also confirmed reports he is set to leave his role after the World Cup when his contract expires.

“My contract ends after the World Cup. This is not news, this is just a fact,” he added.

“We’re now focused on finishing the work that we’ve begun three-and-a-half years ago.

“When I came to Portugal the focus was to try to win everything, but most importantly to prepare for the World Cup.”

Published – June 17, 2026 10:57 am IST

While the stage is set for the FIFA World Cup 2026 commencing on June 11, the mood in the host nations is not entirely euphoric. In Mexico’s capital, where the first match is to be held, teachers associated with the CNTE union have toppled statues of football players and disrupted traffic in their protests for better wages and reversals of pension laws.

But it’s not just Mexico. In the U.S., which is set to host 78 of the 104 FIFA matches, advocacy groups have raised concerns of a ‘climate of fear’ and have been mobilising campaigns amid concerns over immigration enforcement activity near sport venues.

Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA)’s flagship campaign ‘Football Unites the World’ celebrates the sport’s power as a unifying force. The upcoming World Cup series has already fallen short of this campaign with concerns looming over the safety and rights of workers, fans, journalists and communities due to travel bans and heightened Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activities.

Andrea Florence, the executive director for the Sport & Rights Alliance, told the Hindu,“President [Donald] Trump’s harsh anti-human rights rhetoric, aggressive immigration policies, and mass deportation rates have already cast a dark shadow over the world’s biggest sporting event.”

‘Not so inclusive’

The Trump administration’s hardline immigration crackdown has long raised concerns for what the global sports governing body regards as ‘the biggest and most inclusive FIFA World Cup in history’

Firstly, the travel bans effectively exclude various countries from the sports event. The Trump administration has fully restricted and limited the entry of nationals from 19 countries such as Haiti and Iran whose teams have qualified to contest in the FIFA tournament. It has also issued partial restrictions for nationals from 20 countries including Senegal, which is participating in the World Cup series. While Iran’s integral football team has been granted permission, reports stated that Iran has accused the U.S. of denying visas to various staff members.

Secondly, data from the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse show that a high presence of ICE activities overlaps with cities where tournaments are scheduled. The U.S. is hosting matches across 11 cities: Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco Bay Area and Seattle. Six of these cities are located in the States of Texas, Georgia, California and Florida— four of the top five States with the most number of persons detained by the ICE in Fiscal Year 2026.

Additionally, offices in San Francisco, Miami, Los Angeles and New York where tournaments are being hosted had over 68,000 people in ICE’s Alternatives to Detention (ATD) monitoring programmes as of April this year. These are also among the top five cities with the highest number of persons in ATD programmes.

ICE, the U.S. federal law enforcement agency,  has emerged as the face of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown and its harsh raids and use of force have been met with outrage and protests.

Latest data, as on April 2026, show that about 60,000 people were held in ICE detention and over 1.8 lakh individuals were being monitored.

An analysis by the Brookings Institution suggested that around four lakh people have been booked into ICE since Mr. Trump took office and more than 1.45 lakh U.S. citizen children have likely experienced a parent being booked into detention during this period. Further, findings by the Deportation Data Project reveal that ICE is making more arrests than usual and has started making more street arrests and arrests of people without criminal convictions.

However, the impact that ICE activities would have on the sporting event was not unforeseen. What has been missing is accountability from both the government and FIFA.

The Human Rights Watch (HRW), in April, said that FIFA should press the U.S. government for an “ICE Truce” during the World Cup given the risks that abusive immigration operations pose to sports fans.

FIFA has neither clarified accountability nor given assurances. Instead, the organisational body had presented Mr. Trump with a “FIFA Peace Prize” last year. 

Ms. Florence pointed out, “FIFA’s weak response to human rights threats means that we are witnessing a distinctively dangerous climate of fear, uncertainty, and repression.”

Stands to the streets

These concerns have prompted efforts and campaigns from immigration advocacy groups to protect fans and residents. Their actions range from campaigns to awareness and threats to go on a strike.

For instance, the Florida Rapid Response Alliance for Immigrant Safety and Empowerment (RAISE) has compiled resources to support immigrant communities. Their free and confidential hotline is open to people who want to report ICE/immigration enforcement activity.

El Movimiento DFW, a civil rights group in Dallas, has been providing whistle kits with information on how to obtain a free consultation with an immigration attorney in case ICE agents detain people near venues.

In SoFi stadium in Los Angeles, a FIFA host venue, workers have threatened to go on a strike if ICE agents are deployed at the event.

Another prominent campaign, ‘No ICE in the Cup’, operates as a national call to action demanding ICE to stay out of stadiums, watch parties, local businesses and streets where people gather to celebrate the game.

International organisations including Reporters Without Borders and Amnesty International have also released advisories anticipating increased ICE activity.

With fear and uncertainty looming over residents, journalists, and fans, it remains to be seen how the event will unfold. As Ms. Florence said, “We don’t know what to expect, and that is the issue.”

Published – June 10, 2026 08:05 pm IST

Mexican soccer players stand with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, as part of a ceremony for Mexico’s national soccer team, which will represent the country at the 2026 FIFA World Cup co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, at the Centro de Alto Rendimiento (CAR) in Mexico City, Mexico, on June 8, 2026.
| Photo Credit: Reuters