Sports
Cristiano Ronaldo says 2026 World Cup ‘definitely’ his last
RIYADH: Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo on Tuesday said next year’s World Cup would be his last as he winds down one of the all-time great careers.
The 40-year-old forward, with more than 950 club and international goals, also said he would retire from football in “one or two years”.
“Definitely, yes,” he told a Saudi forum by video link, when asked if 2026 would be his final World Cup. “I’m gonna be 41 years old and I think it will be the moment.”
Ronaldo, who began a lucrative stint at Saudi Arabia’s Al Nassr in 2023, also elaborated on comments last week when he said he would retire “soon”.
“Let’s be honest, when I mean soon, it’s probably one or two years, I’ll still be at the game,” he said.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner is hoping to play at a sixth World Cup next year. He came closest to lifting the trophy on debut in 2006, when Portugal lost to France in the semi-finals.
Portugal have yet to qualify for the 2026 tournament in the USA, Canada, and Mexico, but can secure their spot if they beat Ireland on Thursday.
Last month, Ronaldo became the top goalscorer in World Cup qualifying history when he netted twice against Hungary to reach 41 goals, overtaking retired Guatemalan international Carlos Ruiz’s 39.
The former Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Juventus forward is also the all-time leading international goalscorer with 143 strikes.
During an interview on Piers Morgan Uncensored last week, Ronaldo opened up further about the realities of his looming retirement.
“It will be difficult? Yes. Probably will cry, yes. I’m an open person. It will be very, very difficult, yes,” he said.
Ronaldo joined Al Nassr after leaving Manchester United for a second time in late 2022, a move that heralded an influx of late-career stars to the oil-rich kingdom.
Ronaldo initially signed for 200 million euros a year, according to a source close to Al Nassr at the time, and inked a two-year contract extension in June.
Last month, he was named by Bloomberg as the sport’s first billionaire, and topped the Forbes list of highest-paid footballers for the sixth time in a decade.
With on-and off-field earnings of an estimated $280 million, Ronaldo will earn more than double that of second-placed rival Lionel Messi during the upcoming season, according to Forbes.
Saudi Arabia, which is spending big on sports and entertainment as part of its economic diversification plan, was named as host of the 2034 World Cup last December.
Sports
Two players ejected after scrum amid Knicks’ 50-point lead against Hawks sends referee crashing to the court
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Frustrations boiled over in Game 6 of the New York Knicks-Atlanta Hawks series amid a shocking 50-point Knicks lead in the first half.
Knicks big man Mitchell Robinson and Hawks guard Dyson Daniels were both ejected after receiving double technical fouls after inciting a scrum that led to a referee hitting the court hard in the second quarter.
At the time, the Knicks were up a whopping 72-22 when free throws were being taken by New York. As OG Anunoby hit his and-one opportunity, Robinson and Daniels were face-to-face, leading to an embrace that turned aggressive.
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Mitchell Robinson of the New York Knicks and Jalen Johnson of the Atlanta Hawks fight during the second quarter of Game 6 in the first round of the NBA Eastern Conference playoffs at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Ga., on April 30, 2026. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
One official was trying to break up the skirmish but lost his footing and hit the hardwood. Meanwhile, Robinson was trying to go back at Daniels, and both Hawks and Knicks players were trying to hold others back in the exchange.
Robinson and Daniels continued jawing at each other, repeatedly trying to get face-to-face as coaches and officials worked to calm them down.
Once Robinson and Daniels got back to their respective benches, both players were ejected after further review.
Replay showed that Daniels threw an elbow into Robinson’s chest while Anunoby was taking the free throw, and the Knicks center reacted accordingly. Ultimately, it led to an early exit for both players.

Mitchell Robinson of the New York Knicks reacts during the first quarter of Game 6 against the Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the NBA Eastern Conference playoffs at State Farm Arena in Atlanta on April 30, 2026. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
The Knicks entered the game on the road in Atlanta with a chance to move on to the second round of the NBA Playoffs, but perhaps even they didn’t expect what occurred in the first half.
When the buzzer rang out at the end of the second quarter, the Knicks were up 83-36 going into the locker room. Though there are two quarters left to play, it’s not looking good for the Hawks, who were shooting a lackluster 31% from the field, while committing 14 turnovers.
Meanwhile, the Knicks couldn’t stop hitting their shots, especially Anunoby, who had more points than the Hawks did as a team at one point in the first half. He ended the half with 26 points on 10-of-12 shooting, while hauling in seven rebounds and two assists. He also tallied four steals for New York.

Dyson Daniels of the Atlanta Hawks drives around Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks during the first quarter of Game 6 in the first round of the NBA Eastern Conference playoffs at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Ga., on April 30, 2026. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
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Mikal Bridges (16 points) and Jalen Brunson (13 points) also added to the Knicks’ total, while Karl-Anthony Towns hit all 10 of his free throw attempts in the first half.
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Sports
Colts decline Anthony Richardson’s fifth-year option, setting former No. 4 overall pick up for free agency
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The Indianapolis Colts have declined quarterback Anthony Richardson’s fifth-year option.
Richardson, the team’s No. 4 overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft, is headed for free agency after the 2026 season.
The move was one many viewed as inevitable considering the tumultuous start Richardson has had to his NFL career.
The Florida product has dealt with a number of injuries and inconsistent play, and the Colts looked outside the organization for quarterback help before the start of the 2025 season.
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Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson Sr. warms up before a preseason game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Md., on Aug. 7, 2025. (Perry Knotts/Getty Images)
Indy was high on Richardson when it took him with the fourth overall pick of that year’s draft, though there were some who questioned if he was NFL ready right away.
That proved not to be the case. Richardson split time with veteran journeyman Gardner Minshew in 2023, while Joe Flacco eventually took over for him in 2024.
Richardson eventually got his starting spot back over Flacco in 2024, with the Colts announcing he would be the team’s starter the rest of the way.

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Daniel Jones runs off the field after a game against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., on Oct. 19, 2025. (Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Imagn Images)
But he was benched prior to Flacco coming in after voluntarily taking himself out of a game for one play, saying he “needed a breather.” The move was ridiculed by pundits and fans, and the Colts ultimately made an example of it.
The Colts signed Daniel Jones during the 2025 offseason after the New York Giants released him midway through the 2024 campaign, parting ways with their own first-round pick who had a roller-coaster tenure with the franchise. Jones and Richardson were pitted in an open quarterback battle at the start of training camp, and, on Aug. 19, Jones was named the team’s starter.
Richardson served as Jones’ backup to begin the year, but he was placed on the injured reserve after a freak accident fractured an orbital bone in his eye during pregame warmups.
Richardson also dealt with a grade-three AC joint sprain that required an IR stint during his rookie season. It was initially supposed to be a one-to-two-month recovery, but he needed surgery to repair the shoulder.

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson warms up before a game against the Miami Dolphins at Lucas Oil Stadium on Sept. 7, 2025. (Trevor Ruszkowski/Imagn Images)
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Richardson heads into his fourth NFL season fighting for his next contract, whether it’s with the Colts or elsewhere.
Jones re-signed with Indianapolis for two years and $88 million with $50 million guaranteed, and rookie Riley Leonard remains on the depth chart.
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Seahawks Super Bowl hero Derick Hall opens up about how ‘God’ saved him from near-certain death
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Seattle Seahawks linebacker Derick Hall made his mark on NFL history when he came up with a tone-setting strip sack in the Super Bowl against the New England Patriots this February.
There’s a low percent chance that any football player will get a moment like that in his career. But Hall had to beat much greater odds. Hall had a 1% chance of survival when he was born four months premature at just 23 weeks gestation, born without a heartbeat and suffering from a brain bleed.
“I wasn’t born… breathing,” he told Fox News Digital. “I was born dead.
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Derick Hall of the Seattle Seahawks strip sacks Drake Maye of the New England Patriots during the third quarter of the NFL Super Bowl LX at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., on Feb. 8, 2026. (Brooke Sutton/Getty Images)
For his mother, Stacy Gooden-Crandle, those first days of her son’s life were filled with uncertainty and fear.
“Emotional, a lot of uncertainty, scared,” she said of her emotions in the days that followed her son’s premature birth. “But… those weren’t the feelings that I was feeling during Derick’s birth. I just trusted that God would work everything out.”
That belief became the center of how the family made sense of everything that followed.
“It is probably the most important thing that we share,” Gooden-Crandle said of their religion.
“We are people of faith and have been for most of my lifetime. I joined church when I was 16 years old, and I’ve just grown up as a woman of faith. I’ve raised my children in the church and instilled faith in them and just allowed them to flourish in their faith in their walk with Christ.”
For Hall, growing up inside that environment gave meaning to struggles he didn’t yet understand.
“It was huge. It was amazing because I never really understood why me or why my family had to go through what I was going through,” Hall said said.

Derick Hall of the Seattle Seahawks watches from the sideline during the national anthem before an NFL game against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga., on Dec. 7, 2025. (Perry Knotts/Getty Images)
“My pastor always told me, you weren’t dying for this, you are blessed to be in this position and God has something greater for you, and I think that helped me be at ease with the situation and the things that me and my family were enduring during the time.
“I always speak to my faith because obviously I’m a miracle child, and I don’t say I’m doing good, I say I’m blessed, I can’t complain, I’m above ground and I’m blessed… You can’t tell me that a child with a one percent chance to live and not supposed to be walking, not supposed to be talking, not even supposed to be alive, ends up being a Super Bowl champion one day without the Lord being in their lives.”
Even after surviving infancy, the challenges didn’t disappear, and his childhood looked very different from other kids.
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“My hardest time period was from about the age of four or five to about the age of 12 or 13,” Hall said. “I could go out and play, but it was only for about five minutes at a time and I would have to go sit down for an hour just to allow my body and my lungs to catch back up, and to this day my lungs are still underdeveloped, they always will be, they’ll always be three years behind.”
Those limits extended into nearly every part of his life, including the seasons when other kids were outside playing freely.
But through it all, Hall discovered football, and his condition wasn’t going to keep him from the game that would define his life.

Derick Hall of the Seattle Seahawks holds the Vince Lombardi trophy on stage with his teammates after winning Super Bowl LX against the New England Patriots at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., on Feb. 8, 2026. (Brooke Sutton/Getty Images)
“I started playing football at the age of four because I was trying to develop my body and get to the point where I was able to do things, and I fell in love with it because it was the first thing that I was able to do to make me feel like a normal kid,” he said.
For his mom, that moment came with a difficult decision about her son’s wellbeing.
“It was difficult to make the decision to allow him to play, so I allowed him to play flag football in the beginning, but making that jump to allow him to play tackle football when we were still seeing a neurologist every six months for a brain bleed, it was a difficult decision,” she said.
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“I made sure all the coaches had asthma pumps and rescue inhalers, and I gave one to the coaches, the trainers, I kept one, to make sure if somebody needed to get to him they had what he needed… And as he progressed, I was getting more and more comfortable.”
The faith in letting him play football paid off when Hall received his first college scholarship offer when he was just in the eighth grade, his mom said.
Hall went on to be a standout linebacker at Gulfport High School in Mississippi, rising from a touted four-star prospect to a dominant All-SEC edge rusher at Auburn University.
Hall finished his career at Auburn with 147 tackles, 19.5 sacks and 29.5 tackles for loss in 40 games. A highly touted recruit, Hall developed into a dominant SEC starter, earning first-team All-SEC honors in 2022 as a team captain, known for his elite power, speed, and high motor.
It earned him a chance to take his extraordinary story to the NFL as he went on to be the 37th pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
But the 2025 didn’t unfold the way Derick Hall expected, at least in terms of his individual stats at first. For much of the year, the numbers didn’t match the effort. He was getting pressure, getting hits, doing the work that doesn’t always show up in headlines, but the sacks weren’t coming.
“I was steady getting hits… I’m getting pressures,” Hall said. “But I can’t get the sack… I’m like, Lord, whatever you got planned, let it reveal itself.”
Statistically, that frustration was real. Hall finished the regular season with just two sacks across 14 games, contributing more as a rotational edge presence than a headline pass rusher. But within Seattle’s defense — a unit built on balance, depth and consistent pressure — his role still mattered. The Seahawks leaned on a collective pass rush rather than one dominant star, finishing the season as one of the league’s more effective defensive fronts.
And then, almost all at once, everything changed.
On the biggest stage in football, in Super Bowl LX against the Patriots, Hall delivered the kind of performance that reshapes a career. He recorded two sacks and a forced fumble, including a strip sack that helped break the game open and set the tone for Seattle’s 29–13 win. That single play — driving through the offensive line, knocking the ball loose, and creating a turnover — became one of the defining moments of the game.
For Hall, it didn’t feel like a coincidence. It felt like timing.
“I got to that Super Bowl and I got both sacks, and I’m like, man, ain’t no time like God’s time,” he said. “That’s true, man.”
In a season where he had spent months waiting for production to match effort, the breakthrough came when it mattered most.
“Mentally it was tough this year,” he said. “But like I said, it’s a blessing.”
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After the game, the numbers told one story: two sacks, a forced fumble, a championship. But for Hall, the meaning ran deeper, tied back to something far bigger than a stat sheet.
“You can’t tell me that a child with a one percent chance to live… ends up being a Super Bowl champion one day without the Lord being in their lives,” he said. “That’s a miracle in itself.”
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