Jorge Jesus Appointed New Portugal Head Coach: "I Will Call Up Ronaldo If Possible"

Portugal, which was eliminated in the Round of 16 of the 2026 North and Central America World Cup, has appointed veteran Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus (71) as its new national team head coach.

The Portuguese Football Federation announced on July 10 (KST) that it has appointed Jesus as the new leader of the national team.

Jesus' contract runs until 2030.

He will lead the national team through the UEFA Nations League, the 2028 UEFA European Football Championship (Euro 2028), and the 2030 FIFA World Cup, which Portugal will co-host with Spain and Morocco.

Portugal concluded its World Cup campaign after a 0-1 loss to Spain in the Round of 16 match held on July 7.

Roberto Martinez (Spain), who had led the national team since January 2023, has stepped down.

The new head coach, Jesus, has spent most of his coaching career in Portugal, managing several prestigious clubs including Benfica and Sporting CP.

He has also managed Fenerbahçe in Turkey, as well as Al-Hilal and Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia.

During the 2025-2026 season, he led Al-Nassr to the top of the Saudi Pro League, but did not reach an agreement on a contract extension.

He is also familiar to Korean fans from the 2024-2025 season when he was managing Al-Hilal; after a 7-0 victory over K League 1 side Gwangju FC in the AFC Champions League Elite quarterfinals, he made a gesture suggesting Gwangju manager Lee Jung-hyo (currently manager of Suwon Samsung) should watch his words and refused to shake hands with him.

According to reports from ESPN and others, Jesus drew attention during his inauguration press conference on July 10 by stating that he would call up star player Cristiano Ronaldo to the national team if possible.

Jesus managed Ronaldo at Al-Nassr last season.

Following the loss to Spain in the North and Central America World Cup, Ronaldo stated that this tournament was his last World Cup, but he did not clarify whether he would continue his international career.

"Ronaldo is a symbol of Portuguese football. He will go down in history," Jesus said. "I haven't spoken to Ronaldo yet, but he is not a player who would ever be a problem for the national team or for me."

He added, "I need to talk to him and find out what he wants to do. He has always said he wants to finish his playing career at Al-Nassr. If he is in a situation where he can be called up to the national team, I will call him."

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.