theSIGNAL SPORT
6 November 2026
"Greatness is rarely tested by victory; it is tested by how we leave the stage."
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Sport

Japan's Elder Statesman Challenges Infantino

Kozo Tashima, honorary president of the Japan Football Association, is throwing his hat into the ring. His target: Gianni Infantino, in March's Fifa election in Rabat. He is only the second challenger, after ex-Tottenham defender Ramon Vega, whose five required nominations remain uncertain. Tashima's, by contrast, are considered a formality. The timing is delicious. Asia's president, Sheikh Salman, has just U-turned and endorsed Infantino, so Tashima could fracture the continent's vote. Uefa, reportedly behind him, may have decided a non-European face works better. "It's not about winning or losing," Tashima says.…
  • Can a non-European challenger like Tashima truly unseat an entrenched Fifa president?
Sport

Ronaldo Quits Portugal, Too Late for Some

Cristiano Ronaldo is done with Portugal, and the sadness comes with a sting. In Qatar, Gonçalo Ramos scored a hat-trick in his place, yet crowds still roared for the icon. Like late-period Elvis in Las Vegas, he remained the show, even as his team paid for it.
  • When fame outgrows form, who should decide that a great athlete leaves?
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Photo: Krzysztof Dubiel / Unsplash
Cristiano Ronaldo ends 23 years of international football with Portugal after a dispute with his coach.
Sport

Ronaldo Walks Out on Portugal After 234 Games

Cristiano Ronaldo, 41, ends 23 years with Portugal after a row with coach Jorge Jesus, and the exit feels unfinished.

One hundred and forty-six goals. Two hundred and thirty-four caps. Twenty-three years. And then, a quiet exit through the back door.

Cristiano Ronaldo, 41, has retired from international football, and the way he left is already dividing Portugal. The trigger is a dispute with coach Jorge Jesus. Ronaldo left the squad's training camp without permission, and the federation responded with a 30-day sanction, already served, plus a fine of 255 euros. Jesus then benched him for one match and made clear he did not plan to start him in the next.

Ronaldo went home. His final appearance came on 24 September against Wales. Jesus insists the door stayed open and that the choice was the player's, but one fact is hard to dodge: Ronaldo was no longer an automatic starter, and he has never taken that well. Compare it with Lionel Messi, who left Argentina less than a month ago to the applause of a whole nation.

⚽
146
international goals in 234 games for Portugal
Discuss
  • Should a player's past achievements protect him from being dropped to the bench by a coach?
  • Ronaldo's farewell is contrasted with Messi's; does the manner of an exit change how we remember a career?
  • A fine of 255 euros seems small for a star; is the punishment meaningful at all?
  • Scolari criticised Ronaldo publicly but encouraged him privately; which approach to young talent works better, and why?
  • Is calling Ronaldo's reaction a tantrum fair, or does it ignore how much he adapted over the years?
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theSIGNAL IN THE LAB
1VOCABULARY
bitter aftertastebenched
sanctionformalityU-turned
fracturereconciliations
2GRAMMAR FOCUS
Nominalisation — converting verbs to nouns for formal register
Nominalisation turns verbs or adjectives into nouns (e.g. depart → departure, dispute → dispute, decide → decision) so that actions become 'things' and the writing sounds more formal and impersonal. Compare 'Ronaldo left the camp without permission' with 'Ronaldo's departure from the camp without permission'.
departure · decision · retirement · endorsement · appearance · response · challenge
  1. Ronaldo's from the training camp without permission triggered the dispute with Jorge Jesus.
  2. The federation's to the incident was a 30-day sanction and a fine of 255 euros.
  3. Ronaldo's from international football after 234 caps has divided opinion in Portugal.
  4. His final for his country came on 24 September against Wales.
  5. Jesus insisted that the to leave had been the player's alone.
  6. Sheikh Salman's sudden of Infantino could weaken Tashima's hopes of winning Asia's support.
3COLLOCATIONS
Match the verb on the left with the noun phrase it best collocates with on the right.
  1. throw (his hat)
  2. serve (a sanction)
  3. fracture (the)
  4. endorse (a)
  5. leave through (the)
4CRITICAL THINKING
Sheikh Salman's U-turn shows how quickly alliances can shift in sports governance, while Ronaldo's exit shows how little control federations sometimes have over their biggest names. Which of the two bodies, a national federation or Fifa, is more dependent on its star figures, and what risks does that dependence create for the sport itself?
5CREATIVE · HEADLINES
Write a headline for the top story in each of the following styles. One line each, no explanation:
  • TABLOID NEWSPAPER
  • LUXURY MAGAZINE
  • ACTIVIST BLOG
6WRITING
Imagine you are Jorge Jesus and write a short, honest letter (100-120 words) to Ronaldo, to be published in a Portuguese newspaper, explaining your side of the story and what you hope he will do next.
7DEGREES OF EXTREMITY
Complete each ladder from mild to strong.
  • annoyed→→
  • disappointed→→
  • a setback→→
  • a disagreement→→
  • criticise→→
  • well known→→
8SPEAKING
  1. Which is harder for an athlete: starting a career or ending one?
  2. Do sporting federations have too much power over the players they select?
  3. Is football politics, like the Fifa election, mainly about ego or about reform?
  4. Should fans be allowed to influence whether a legend keeps playing?