The 2026 FIFA World Cup in the USA, Canada, and Mexico has begun. While the tournament started on an extremely high note, several teams are yet to play their first game in the campaign, including Portugal.
Possibly playing in his career’s last ever FIFA World Cup, Cristiano Ronaldo, 41, is now on the hunt to earn his first World Cup. Arguably boasting one of the strongest squads in the tournament, Portugal, led by Ronaldo, is set to begin its campaign against DR Congo on Jun. 17, 2026. Hoping to replicate Messi’s 2022 World Cup victory, Ronaldo and his team are hopeful to begin their campaign on a positive note.
In a recent exclusive with Clutchpoints, former Chelsea star and 1998 World Cup winner Frank Lebouef opened up and explained why winning the World Cup was easier for Messi compared to Ronaldo.
“[Lionel] Messi got the World Cup because every single player playing around him understood the task that they had, and worked hard for him, and did the job. From Martinez to the other Martinez. And they did what they had to do, sacrificed everything for Messi. And because Messi was still good, it worked. That will be the same for Ronaldo with Portugal, because Portugal has a hell of a team. Especially in the middle of the park for me, with [Rúben] Neves and Vitinha, but also [Nuno] Mendes on the left side, and people who can work. Bernardo Silva, of course, and so many others.
“What’s gonna be the situation with Cristiano Ronaldo? He’s 41, if I’m not mistaken. I’m not sure he can play every three days for a World Cup. So he will have to understand that he has to be on the bench sometimes. He’s not gonna start games. What will be his behavior in that situation? If he accepts the role and does like he did during the Euro 2016 against France in the final when he got injured and was on the bench and was like the coach. If he does that, Portugal has a chance to get him the World Cup,” Lebouef shared.
However, when asked about the most asked question in soccer, the “GOAT’ debate between Messi and Ronaldo, the 58-year-old made his choice clear. “And at the end of the day, it would be very nice. You know, after Messi, then you have Ronaldo getting the World Cup. That would be symbolic and very nice ending to the rivalry that they have because nobody can say. That’s stupid to say Messi is a GOAT, Ronaldo is a GOAT.”
Messi began his FIFA World Cup campaign by scoring a hat-trick against Algeria, as fans expect something similar from “CR7” as well.
Frank Lebouef thanks Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo for making the Ballon d’Or ‘interesting’
In the same exclusive interview with Clutchpoints, presented and arranged by World Cup Betting, the former Chelsea player explained how both Messi and Ronaldo raised the level of the Ballon d’Or. Comparing the two legends, Lebouef shared his verdict.
“They’re so different. They’re such different players. They didn’t, almost didn’t play the same position. They were absolutely fantastic, both of them. But to compare them, you have to thank them. You don’t have to compare them. Both of them. And, they made the Ballon d’Or very interesting.
“Because before them, we didn’t care about the Ballon d’Or. They are guilty to have put that trophy, which is an individual trophy, at the top of the world. But at the same time, it’s so amazing what they were capable of doing, uh, and the rivalry that they had.”
Led by Ronaldo and managed by Roberto Martínez, Portugal is set to begin their campaign against DR Congo and follow that up with matches against Uzbekistan and Colombia.
Comparing Frank Lebouef’s own French team vs the current generation of France
While Lebouef spoke highly of several World Cup teams this season, he also heaped praise on the French national team despite his criticism of them. In the same interview, he was asked to compare the current generation of France’s national team with his era’s team. While Lebouef explained that such a comparison was not possible, he still managed to share his insights.
“The thing is, it’s always difficult to compare generations because, for example, refereeing has changed. You know? Let’s say that we play, we are all fit, which is not the case. But we all play, France ’98 and France’ 26. If we have a referee from our time, I think they won’t last, like, 10 minutes because of tackles and everything that is a butcher. On the other hand, if we play now, we’ll have like six red cards in the first five minutes. So it’s different to compare.”
However, he also made sure to add that his generation’s team was more complete, and it might have been a difficult task for the 2026 squad to beat them. “I think I would say that we were more complete. The ’98 team was more complete in every line. At the back, in the middle of the park, we were so strong. And because we had Zidane, Djorkaeff, Trezeguet, Thierry Henry at the front, that was efficient too. So I wouldn’t say we were better, but it would have been a very difficult task for the 2026 team to beat us.”
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