Jorge Jesus Appointed Portugal National Team Coach
Portugal have turned to one of their most combustible, decorated coaches to lead them into a home World Cup. Jorge Jesus, 71 years old and as fiery as ever, has been appointed national team head coach on a four-year deal that runs through to the 2030 tournament, which Portugal will co-host with Spain and Morocco.
The decision comes in the immediate aftermath of a bruising exit. Portugal slipped out of this summer’s World Cup in the last 16, beaten 1-0 by Spain, and Roberto Martinez had already confirmed he would step down from the role he had held since January 2023. The defeat accelerated a changing of the guard on the touchline. It has not yet done the same on the pitch.
Because Jesus made one thing clear on his first day: Cristiano Ronaldo is not a closed chapter.
Ronaldo remains central – on Jesus’ terms
Ronaldo, 41, announced after Portugal’s elimination that this World Cup would be his sixth and final. He stopped short of declaring a full retirement from international football, leaving a crack in the door. Jesus has now pushed it wider.
Speaking on Friday, the new coach called the five-time Ballon d’Or winner a “symbol of Portuguese football” and underlined that, as long as Ronaldo is playing and fit enough to be selected, he will consider him for the national team – “within certain limits and under the conditions that I consider best for the national team”.
It was a firm message. Respect for the legend, but no blank cheques.
Jesus has recent, first-hand experience of managing Ronaldo. The pair worked together at Al Nassr last season, winning the Saudi Pro League title during Jesus’ one-year spell in charge. Ronaldo’s contract in Riyadh runs until 2027, and Jesus described the past year with him as “great pleasure” and “easy to work with”.
He also moved quickly to kill any notion of a looming power struggle. “I haven’t spoken with [Ronaldo] yet,” he admitted, before stressing that Ronaldo is “never going to be a problem for the national team. Not for the national team, nor for me.”
The implication is stark. Ronaldo will remain an option, but under a coach who has never been afraid to make hard choices.
A serial winner returns to lead a golden era’s last act
Jesus arrives with a CV that demands attention. Volatile touchline presence, yes, but also a serial collector of trophies.
Most recently, he swept a domestic treble with Al Hilal in the 2023-24 season, underlining his ability to dominate a league when given time and resources. Before that, he carved out his reputation at Benfica, where his first spell yielded three league titles in 2010, 2014 and 2015 and helped turn the club into a relentless domestic force.
He then crossed the Atlantic and lit up Brazil. In a whirlwind year with Flamengo, Jesus lifted five major trophies, including the Brazilian title and the Copa Libertadores in 2019, leaving an imprint that still lingers in Rio de Janeiro.
Now he inherits a Portugal squad rich in talent but carrying the weight of expectation. A generation that grew up under Cristiano Ronaldo is edging towards its final chapter, just as the country prepares to host the world.
Nations League debut, World Cup on the horizon
The first glimpse of Jesus’ Portugal will come on 24 September, when they open their Nations League Group D campaign against Wales. It is hardly a soft landing, but it offers an early test of his ideas, his selections, and his handling of the Ronaldo question.
That match is the starting line of a four-year run-up to 2030, when Portugal will share hosting duties with neighbours Spain and Morocco. The pressure will be immense. The opportunity, even bigger.
Jesus has never shied away from either. Now he must fuse a fading icon, a gifted new core, and a country’s expectations into a team capable of peaking on home soil.
Ronaldo has called time on World Cups. Jesus’ task is to decide how long he remains part of Portugal’s story – and whether this new era can finally deliver the ultimate prize in their own backyard.
