Saying Portugal’s national team needs “a new voice,” manager Roberto Martinez confirmed he is stepping down after the 1-0 loss to Spain on Monday in their round of 16 match in Arlington, Texas.
Martinez has coached Portugal since 2023 and planned to leave his post after the team’s run to what he hoped was a World Cup championship. His contract was due to expire after the tournament.
“Yes, this is my last game with the national team,” said Martinez, a native of Spain who turns 53 on July 13. “I’m proud. I’ve had 45 games, and I felt welcomed in Portugal and loved. It’s a memory I’ll take with me always.
“It was a pleasure, a source of pride and responsibility. It’s hard, but it’s the end of a cycle and in the context it makes absolute sense.”
Martinez said, “It’s important to have a new voice now” and added that it was fair for Portuguese Football Federation president Pedro Proenca, who was appointed last year, to be able to choose his own manager.
“I want to thank the president and the board for their support and for providing me and my coaching staff with all the necessary conditions,” Martinez said. “I appreciate their strength and support, but it is the end of a cycle.”
Portugal is a co-host of the 2030 World Cup along with Spain and Morocco and is automatically qualified.
Martinez managed Belgium’s national team from 2016-22 and also coached Everton, Swansea City and Wigan Athletic. He led Portugal to the 2024 European Championship quarterfinals, then the UEFA Nations League title in June 2025.
Portugal finished second in this World Cup in Group K, going 1-0-2 (5 points) with a 5-0 win over Uzbekistan and draws against the Democratic Republic of the Congo (1-1) and group winner Colombia (0-0).
Last Thursday, Portugal held off Croatia 2-1 in the round of 32 before elimination on Monday, which also marked the final World Cup game for legendary attacker Cristiano Ronaldo, 41.
“We didn’t fail,” Martinez said. “We lost a game against a team that’s one of the favorites. We showed incredible individual talent. Winning or losing is about details in the big games, with big teams. … You fail when you don’t try to win, and we tried to win until the last minute.”
Martinez said to those thinking Ronaldo should have been subbed for late in the game that he was physically capable of playing at least 90 minutes and delivering the needed goal.
“This is not the time to look for anything beyond the fact that we are talking about a football icon,” Martinez said of Ronaldo.
“There aren’t many Cristiano Ronaldos. I will forever appreciate what he tried to do in this World Cup, because his dream was to win it. He was an incredible example of a captain, both on a footballing level and a human level.
“His impact inside the dressing room and within the group of players is something the entire coaching staff and all the players will carry with us forever. He is an example of football, of an athlete and of the human being behind the athlete.”
–Field Level Media
