Reports indicate that the U.S. men`s national soccer team is planning a friendly match against Portugal. This game would be one of their final warm-ups before the 2026 World Cup on home soil and would mark Cristiano Ronaldo`s first appearance in the United States since 2014.
The friendly is expected to take place in late March during the international break at Mercedes-Benz Arena in Atlanta. This stadium serves as the home ground for MLS club Atlanta United and NFL team Atlanta Falcons. With a capacity of 71,000 spectators, the arena is listed among the venues for the 2026 World Cup and is slated to host one of the tournament`s semi-final matches. The game might also coincide with the opening of U.S. Soccer`s new $200 million training facility in Fayetteville, an Atlanta suburb.
In addition to Portugal, U.S. Soccer is reportedly considering friendly matches against Belgium and, according to French publication L`Equipe, even against the 2018 World Cup champions, France. These games are also expected to be held at NFL stadiums on the East Coast, offering teams anticipated to qualify for the World Cup an early opportunity to familiarize themselves with the host nation`s facilities.
The USMNT aims to use the months leading up to the World Cup to test themselves against high-caliber opponents. Their schedule is planned to feature almost exclusively teams ranked within FIFA`s top 30. Recent matches include June friendlies against Turkey (a 1-2 loss) and Switzerland (a 0-5 loss), as well as a Saturday match against South Korea, which ended in a 2-0 win for the visitors. Upcoming opponents like Japan, Ecuador, Australia, and Uruguay are also among the top 30, as are potential European adversaries in March.
“I think it was very challenging for us,” stated USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino after the defeat to South Korea, emphasizing the importance of facing top-tier opposition. “The higher the level of opponents we face, the greater the risk, because perhaps it will be difficult for us to achieve a result right now, but I am confident that we will learn more.”
The Portuguese national team, currently ranked sixth globally, is a regular participant in World Cups, reaching the quarter-finals in 2022, and recently won the 2024-25 UEFA Nations League. The squad boasts numerous players from leading European clubs, such as Bruno Fernandes from Manchester United and Vitinha from Paris Saint-Germain, but at 40 years old, Cristiano Ronaldo remains the pivotal figure.
Ronaldo has never played for a U.S.-based club team, though many prominent global footballers regularly visit the USA, primarily for pre-season tours with their European clubs. However, the Portuguese international has not played in the country since August 2014, when he made a substitute appearance for Real Madrid in a friendly against Manchester United at Michigan Stadium. None of Ronaldo`s subsequent clubs – including Real Madrid, Juventus, Manchester United, and Al-Nassr – undertook pre-season tours to the U.S. during his tenure, and the Portugal national team has not played in the country since a friendly against Ireland at MetLife Stadium that same summer.
Cristiano Ronaldo`s Legal Troubles in the U.S.
Cristiano Ronaldo has also not been photographed in the U.S. since 2017, the year German newspaper Der Spiegel revealed allegations that he raped model Kathryn Mayorga in Las Vegas in 2009. The player and his team have consistently denied these accusations, but a protracted legal battle has since unfolded between Ronaldo`s and Mayorga`s legal representatives.
Mayorga stated that the day after the incident, she reported it to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department but withheld the assailant`s name and the location, fearing public backlash. In the weeks that followed, Mayorga initiated civil proceedings against Ronaldo, and her attorneys contacted the player`s legal team. Ronaldo allegedly completed a series of questionnaires, and according to documents reviewed by Der Spiegel, he claimed the sex was consensual. However, The Athletic reported that he also stated, “she said no and stop several times” and that he apologized afterward.
In January 2010, Mayorga, her family, and legal representatives met with Ronaldo`s legal team in Las Vegas (the player was not present), and the parties agreed to an out-of-court settlement. Ronaldo paid Mayorga $375,000 in exchange for her commitment not to publicly disclose the allegations. “This agreement is by no means a confession of guilt,” Ronaldo`s representatives stated in part in a 2018 statement.
After the allegations became public in 2017, Mayorga hired a new lawyer who sought to have the “settlement and non-disclosure agreement declared void.” Las Vegas police reopened the case in September 2018, and by January 2019, a warrant was issued for Ronaldo`s DNA sample. According to court documents, this sample matched evidence from the case, as reported by ESPN.
By that point, investigators faced difficulties in continuing the inquiry for several reasons. They were unable to independently verify documents published on Football Leaks and later reported by Der Spiegel. British police refused to cooperate regarding a 2005 rape allegation against Ronaldo, although INTERPOL confirmed his arrest 18 days after that accusation. Mayorga`s attorneys also did not respond to investigators` requests during this period. Consequently, the Clark County District Attorney`s office decided not to file charges, stating that “the allegations of sexual assault against Cristiano Ronaldo cannot be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.”
In September 2018, Mayorga also filed a case in state court, which was subsequently transferred to federal court the following year. This case was ultimately dismissed by a judge in June 2022. The lawyer representing Mayorga was later ordered to pay Ronaldo $334,637.50 in legal fees for using stolen documents in a lawsuit, with Mayorga and her legal representatives withdrawing their appeal against this payment in May 2024.
