Cristiano Ronaldo Joins Saudi Crown Prince and US President Donald Trump at White House Dinner

Cristiano Ronaldo and his partner, Georgina Rodríguez, attended a lavish White House dinner hosted by United States President Donald Trump.

Cristiano Ronaldo Joins Saudi Crown Prince and US President Donald Trump at White House Dinner

Cristiano Ronaldo was in attendence at Donald Trump's White House dinner, hosted for Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. (via Independent)

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In a star-studded affair, Portuguese icon Cristiano Ronaldo was a surprise guest at a dinner hosted by US President Donald Trump, at the White House for his Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. They were joined by a host of other VIPs, including Elon Musk and Gianni Infantino. 

Cristiano Ronaldo has been the face of the Saudi Pro League, ever since he joined Al-Nassr in 2023. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner is still chasing the 1000-career goals milestone. His move to Al-Nassr led to several other big names, including Neymar Jr., Karim Benzema, N’Golo Kante and others, also agreeing to join the Saudi PL, which has been touted to turn into one of the most prominent leagues in the world. 

Not only has he become the face of the SPL, but the Portuguese legend has also turned into the face of Saudi’s modernization drive, under the ambitious Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Ahead of the prince’s visit to the United States for a meeting with President Donald Trump, it was confirmed that Ronaldo would also be traveling to the US, as a part of Crown Prince Salman’s official delegation.

Inside the White House premises, the former Real Madrid icon was dressed in a black tuxedo, and was seated alongside the likes of Tesla founder and billionaire Elon Musk, US Vice-President JD Vance, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, FIFA President Gianni Infantino, and many others, at the dinner table. In Trump’s address before the state dinner, he spoke highly about the 40-year-old, while also revealing that his youngest son, Barron Trump, is a ‘Ronaldo fan’.

My son is a big fan of [Cristiano] Ronaldo. And Barron [Trump] got to meet him, and I think he respects his father a little bit more now, just the fact that I introduced you.

Interestingly, the visit comes just days after Cristiano Ronaldo had, in an interview with Piers Morgan, announced that the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup, jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, would be his last. Furthermore, the White House dinner also marked his first public appearance in the country, after being accused of r*pe in 2017 by an American teacher, named Kathryn Mayorga.

Ronaldo has not played in the United States since then, but he might be seen in action in March 2026, when Portugal is scheduled to play a friendly against the USMNT in Atlanta. The footballing icon had also manifested about meeting Trump in the interview with Piers Morgan. 

Portugal thrashes Armenia to clinch 2026 World Cup berth despite missing Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo’s absence did not deter Portugal’s qualification chances, as they thrashed Armenia 9-1 to be among the 42 teams to secure a berth at the 2026 World Cup. Five different players scored for the Portugal, including hat-trick heroes Joao Neves and Bruno Fernandes.

Portugal win Armenia Cristiano Ronaldo
Portugal humiliated Armed 9-1 to book a place in the finals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, in Cristiano Ronaldo’s absence. (via ESPN)

A surprise defeat to the Republic of Ireland in their seventh qualifying group encounter last week, meant that Portugal had to win the match against Armenia. During the match against Ireland, captain Cristiano Ronaldo received his first-ever red card in his storied international career, for an elbow on Dara O’Shea. Ireland won 2-0 in the end, thanks to a brace by young AZ striker Troy Parrott.

With Ronaldo out suspended, PSG forward Goncalo Ramos started up front, scoring a goal and providing another assist. Meanwhile, Bruno Fernandes converted two penalties and scored a goal to complete his first international hat-trick. It was also the first hat-trick for Joao Neves, with one of his goals coming from a free-kick. Renato Veiga and Francisco Conceicao were the other goal-scorers.

For the visiting Armenian side, captain Eduard Spertsyan scored a goal in the 18th minute, to cancel out Veiga’s 7th minute opener. However, Armenia could not hold on for a long time, as Ramos’s 28th minute goal allowed the home side to go on a rampage.

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