Cristiano Ronaldo attended a black-tie dinner at the White House on Tuesday alongside U.S. President Donald Trump, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, FIFA president Gianni Infantino and dozens of billionaires and business leaders.
Trump, speaking to open the dinner, indicated that he had met Ronaldo and introduced Ronaldo to his son, Barron, a former soccer player.
“My son is a big fan of Ronaldo — wherever Ronaldo is here,” Trump said at a lectern. “And Barron got to meet him, and I think he respects his father a little bit more now, just the fact that I introduced you.”
“So,” the U.S. president said to Ronaldo and, presumably, Ronaldo’s wife Georgina Rodriguez, “I just want to thank you both for being here.”
Ronaldo was the first non-politician name-checked by Trump in a room that he said was “loaded up with the biggest leaders in the world [of] business, sports.”
The reason for Ronaldo’s trip to Washington was not entirely clear, but it coincided with Bin Salman’s visit to the White House. The dinner concluded a day of bilateral meetings and pomp. It was Bin Salman’s first visit to the U.S. since Saudi agents killed and dismembered Jamal Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist, in 2018.
Ronaldo, arguably the most famous soccer player in the world, has developed close ties with Saudi Arabia. He has become the face of Saudi Arabia’s professional soccer league, which has spent billions of state dollars in recent years to attract some of the most well-known players in the world. Ronaldo plays for Al Nassr, one of the Saudi Pro League teams owned by the country’s sovereign wealth fund, the PIF (Public Investment Fund).
His record-shattering contracts, signed in 2023 and then 2025, also positioned him as something of an ambassador for the Kingdom. In a recent interview with Piers Morgan, Ronaldo described Bin Salman as “our boss.”
Ronaldo’s appearance at the dinner was also notable in that it was his first known visit to the United States since Der Spiegel revealed in 2017 that a Las Vegas woman, Kathryn Mayorga, had accused Ronaldo of rape. The alleged assault – which Ronaldo and his representatives have always denied – occurred while Ronaldo was vacationing in the U.S. in 2009. He played multiple preseason matches for Real Madrid in the States over the years that followed, including in 2014. But since the 2017 revelation, and since Mayorga’s legal team began pursuing the case in U.S. courts in 2018, Ronaldo had stayed away.
Now, though, he and the Portugal national team are slated to play a March 2026 match against the United States in Atlanta. He is also set to captain Portugal at the 2026 World Cup, which will begin in June in Mexico, Canada and the U.S.
Saudi prince Mohammed bin Salman was also in attendance at the White House dinner hosted by President Trump (Anna Rose Layden / Politico / Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Ronaldo will almost certainly be in the Portugal squad for the tournament, though he could be suspended for one or more group-stage games. He was red carded for an elbow in last week’s qualifier against Ireland. The red card triggered an automatic one-game ban, which Ronaldo served on Sunday. FIFA’s disciplinary code, however, states that players “shall be suspended … at least three matches or an appropriate period of time for assault, including elbowing, punching, kicking, biting, spitting at or hitting an opponent.”
If FIFA’s disciplinary committee deems that Ronaldo’s elbow fits that description, he would miss Portugal’s next competitive games, which will be at the World Cup. (FIFA spokespeople did not respond to a Tuesday email seeking clarity on the committee’s process and timeline.)
Ronaldo, 40, is also close to retirement, and has been increasingly involved in diplomatic efforts. In recent months, he has been part of attempts to woo Trump. In July, European Council president Antonio Costa — who, like Ronaldo, is Portuguese — gave the U.S. president a Portugal jersey signed by Ronaldo during a Group of Seven (G7) summit in Canada. Ronaldo’s handwritten note on the jersey read: “To president Donald J. Trump, Playing for Peace.”
In the interview with Morgan, Ronaldo said he wished to meet Trump to discuss world peace.
“He is one of the guys who can help to change the world,” Ronaldo said. “One of the most important guys is the U.S. President. If we can help each other to make this happen…I swear I cannot watch TV. Sometimes I start to see the news and I cannot… He is one of the guys I wish to meet to sit and have a nice talk. If it is here, or in the U.S., wherever he wants, I know he was here in Saudi with our boss (Crown Prince) MBS (Mohammed bin Salman). I wish one day to meet him because he is one of the guys who can make things happen and I like people like that.”
It’s unclear how much time Trump and Ronaldo spent together on Tuesday. At the dinner, Ronaldo was seated at a central table next to a Saudi delegate.
Also in attendance was Infantino, who, with the World Cup coming to the U.S., Canada and Mexico next summer, has developed a close relationship and friendship with Trump. Infantino and Ronaldo were not seated together.
Elon Musk, Tim Cook and other high-profile executives from the tech, finance and energy industries also attended.