PT
Portugal's starting eleven in white before the match against Armenia in Yerevan, with Vitinha and Nuno Mendes in the front row
Sports 10 November 2026

Fellow pros put Vitinha and Nuno Mendes in the FIFPRO World 11 again. The Ballon d'Or winner missed out

19,806 professional footballers from 73 countries voted for FIFPRO's team of the year. PSG's two Portuguese players make it for a second year running, Messi reaches a record 18 selections and Harry Kane falls just short on 27.6%.

The people who play against them every week have picked Vitinha and Nuno Mendes again. Paris Saint-Germain’s two Portuguese players are in the 2026 FIFPRO Men’s World 11, announced on Monday 9 November, a year after both made the 2025 team.

FIFPRO is the global players’ union, and that is what gives this award its weight. No journalists, no national-team coaches. Only players vote, and this year 19,806 of them did, from 73 countries.

Who is in the 2026 FIFPRO Men’s World 11?

It lines up as a 3-3-4, with a heavy Spanish and Parisian accent. David Raya (Arsenal) in goal. Achraf Hakimi and Nuno Mendes (both PSG) and Pau Cubarsí (Barcelona) at the back. Vitinha, Rodri and Jude Bellingham in midfield. Lamine Yamal, Lionel Messi, Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappé up front.

Raya topped the whole ballot with 10,278 votes, a 52% share. Mbappé had the most backing of any outfield player, with 9,105.

Why did Harry Kane miss the FIFPRO World 11?

By a whisker. Kane, who won the Ballon d’Or a fortnight ago after a 73-goal season, took 27.6% of the vote. Messi got in on 29.5% and Haaland on 28.4%. By our sums, the gap between the Englishman and the Argentine is roughly 380 votes.

It sits oddly next to the London gala. The Ballon d’Or jury had Vitinha 14th and Nuno Mendes 23rd. The players rate them among the best eleven on the planet.

What about Cristiano Ronaldo?

Ronaldo was one of the 26 finalists but did not make the team, at the end of a month in which he quit Portugal duty after 234 caps and 146 goals. Messi, on the other hand, is back for the first time since 2023 and extends his own record to 18 selections.

Debuts and records

Cubarsí makes his debut at 19. Yamal, born the same year, becomes the first teenager with two World 11 selections. In the women’s vote, Aitana Bonmatí topped the ballot and Lucy Bronze reached a record ninth selection.

For PSG the tally is three players in the team, two of them Portuguese. For Vitinha and Nuno Mendes, it is a second straight year of being chosen by their peers.

By Vasco Almada

Image: YantsImages / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

FC Porto players in purple kits hug to celebrate a goal at the Estádio D. Afonso Henriques, with a Vitória player in white in the foreground
Sports 9 November 2026

Porto make it 11 from 11 in Guimarães as Pavlidis rescues Benfica in stoppage time

FC Porto beat Vitória SC 2-1 on Sunday, Borja Sainz and substitute Martim Fernandes (86') scoring, to reach the international break with 11 wins from 11 league games and 33 points. Benfica won 3-2 at Estrela da Amadora with a Pavlidis goal in the 94th minute and sit five points back. Third-placed Sporting, on 24, go to the Dragão on 29 November.

Eleven games, eleven wins. FC Porto beat Vitória SC 2-1 in Guimarães on Sunday night, and the club's own match report spells out the number that matters: the champions go into the international break with a perfect record and 33 points. According to O Jogo, only five sides had previously won at least their first 11 games of a Portuguese top-flight season. Porto are the sixth.

Continue reading
Paulo Fonseca in a white shirt, sitting in a blue dugout seat with a focused look
Sports 8 November 2026

Luis Suárez strike gives Paulo Fonseca a winning start at Sporting

Sporting beat Moreirense 1-0 on Saturday in round 11 of Portugal's top flight, Luis Suárez scoring with his left foot on 61 minutes from an Issa Doumbia pass. It was Paulo Fonseca's first game in charge. Sporting stay third on 24 points, one behind Benfica and six behind FC Porto, both of whom have a game in hand.

It took an hour and a left foot. Sporting beat Moreirense 1-0 at Alvalade on Saturday night, Luis Suárez scoring the only goal on 61 minutes, and Paulo Fonseca walked away from his first game in charge with three points. That counts as a decent answer to a messy week. The club had opened talks to end Rui Borges's contract the previous Sunday, after two league games without a win.

Continue reading
The pitch and the rock-cut stand at Braga's Estádio Municipal, where Portugal host Denmark on 14 November
Sports 7 November 2026

Portugal's first squad without Ronaldo has two new faces (and 28 names)

Jorge Jesus hands first senior call-ups to FC Porto full-back Alberto Costa and Monza forward Gustavo Varela for Denmark in Braga on 14 November and Wales in Cardiff on 17 November. Gonçalo Inácio and Nuno Mendes miss out, and seven players one booking from a ban explain the long list.

Jorge Jesus has named his first Portugal squad of the post-Ronaldo era, and it is a big one. Twenty-eight players are called up for the last two Nations League group games, including two men who have never been picked for the senior side before, as A Bola listed them: FC Porto full-back Alberto Costa and Monza forward Gustavo Varela. The list came out at lunchtime on Friday at the federation's base in Oeiras, a day after Cristiano Ronaldo walked away from…

Continue reading
Aerial view of the Estádio Municipal Dr. Magalhães Pessoa in Leiria, with the city behind it
Sports 6 November 2026

Torreense 3-2 Ararat after two stoppage-time goals, as Benfica beat Lech 3-1 to stay perfect

Torreense trailed 2-1 in Leiria at 90 minutes and won it through Javi Vázquez (90+3) and Drameh (90+5). At the Luz, Rafa, Prestianni and Sudakov gave Benfica a fourth win from four in the Europa League. In the Conference League, Sp. Braga drew 0-0 at Aarhus.

At 90 minutes Torreense were losing 2-1 to Ararat-Armenia in Leiria. Five minutes later they had won. Javi Vázquez equalised in the third minute of stoppage time and Drameh made it 3-2 in the fifth, with the Dr. Magalhães Pessoa stadium on its feet. Aguirre had put the Torres Vedras side ahead after 13 minutes before Muradyan (41) and Bruno Wilson turned it round for the Armenians. It was coach João Nuno's first European game in charge. The win, on…

Continue reading
Cristiano Ronaldo, in Portugal's white number 7 shirt and captain's armband, spreads his arms to celebrate a goal at a qualifier in Yerevan in 2025
Sports 5 November 2026

Cristiano Ronaldo quits Portugal duty after 234 caps and 146 goals

The captain announced his international retirement in a five-minute video on Thursday morning, a day before Jorge Jesus names his squad for Denmark and Wales. He leaves with Euro 2016 and two Nations League titles, six weeks after walking out of the camp in Copenhagen.

Cristiano Ronaldo has played his last game for Portugal. The captain announced his retirement from international football, as JN reported, at around 10.30 on Thursday morning, in a video of roughly five minutes posted on social media. He goes with 234 caps and 146 goals, both records in men's international football, and three trophies: Euro 2016 and two Nations League titles. His debut came in August 2003. He is 41 and still plays for Al-Nassr in Saudi…

Continue reading
Jakub Kiwior, number 4 on his back, beside a team-mate in FC Porto's white away kit
Sports 5 November 2026

Porto 4-1 Napoli: two centre-back headers and a first Champions League win

At the Dragão, Bednarek (11') and Kiwior (80') headed in from corners, Gabri Veiga made it 2-1 (70') and Samu finished it from the spot (88') after Rafa Marín was sent off. McTominay had equalised for Napoli on 43'. The crowd was 49,190.

Three defeats, no points, bottom of the table. That was Porto's Champions League record going into matchday four. They came out of it with a rout: 4-1 against Napoli at the Dragão, with their centre-backs doing much of the damage from corners. Jan Bednarek opened the scoring on 11 minutes, heading in a Gabri Veiga corner for his first Champions League goal. Napoli took a while to get going, but when they did they scored. Scott McTominay levelled just…

Continue reading
Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde in a white top during an interview
Sports 4 November 2026

AEK Athens 2-3 Real Madrid: Valverde comes off the bench to win it in stoppage time

AEK led twice through Koïta and Pilios. Bellingham and Mbappé pulled Mourinho's side level, and substitute Federico Valverde curled in the winner from outside the box in the 92nd minute.

José Mourinho's Real Madrid trailed twice in Athens and still left with a 3-2 win. Federico Valverde, kept on the bench after a hamstring problem, came on midway through the second half and bent a shot from outside the box into the top corner in the 92nd minute, as the official match page on Real Madrid's site records. The hosts started brighter. Thibaut Courtois had to stop Mijat Gacinovic and Harold Moukoudi inside ten minutes, and on 11 Aboubakary…

Continue reading
Panoramic view inside Stamford Bridge in London, with packed stands and the floodlit pitch before kick-off
Sports 4 November 2026

A Doumbia goal at Stamford Bridge lifts Sporting into the Champions League top eight, for now

Issa Doumbia scored on 59 minutes after a move involving Ioannidis, Andersen and Luis Suárez, and Sporting, under interim coach Tiago Fernandes, beat Shakhtar 1-0 in London. Nine points from four games leave them provisionally in the league-phase top eight.

Sporting beat Shakhtar Donetsk 1-0 on Tuesday night, as O Jogo reported, in the fourth round of the Champions League league phase. The away game was played in west London, at Stamford Bridge, where the Ukrainian side stages its European home matches because of the Russian invasion. The goal came on 59 minutes. Ioannidis, Andersen and Luis Suárez worked the ball around the edge of the box and Issa Doumbia finished from close range. One was enough.

Continue reading
Vangelis Pavlidis in Benfica's white and red tracksuit, in profile, against a blurred background
Sports 3 November 2026

Benfica 1-0 Alverca as Pavlidis scores from the spot for a sixth straight win

Benfica closed Matchday 10 with a 1-0 win at the Luz. Half-time substitute Claudio Echeverri was brought down by Sergi Gómez and Vangelis Pavlidis converted on 51 minutes. Alverca had a goal ruled out for offside. Benfica go second on 25 points, five behind FC Porto.

Benfica beat Alverca 1-0 on Monday night in the game that closed Matchday 10 of the Liga. Vangelis Pavlidis scored the only goal from the penalty spot on 51 minutes. It's a sixth win in a row for Benfica, who move up to second on 25 points, five behind leaders FC Porto, still perfect after ten games. Marco Silva took off Schjelderup at half-time and sent on Claudio Echeverri. Soon after the restart the Argentine went down in the box under a challenge from…

Continue reading
Marc Márquez in a blue cap and red Ducati leathers, smiling after a race, with mechanics blurred behind him
Sports 2 November 2026

Márquez wins in Malaysia, and the title could now be settled in Portimão

Marc Márquez beat Pedro Acosta and brother Álex at Sepang to move to 399 points, 44 clear of Jorge Martín, who sat out with his injured wrist. Three rounds remain. Leave Qatar more than 74 points ahead and he is champion before the Algarve.

Marc Márquez won the Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday and took a big stride towards an eighth premier-class title. The Ducati rider crossed the line at Sepang 4.172 seconds clear of KTM's Pedro Acosta, with his brother Álex third, according to the official race classification. It was his 80th MotoGP win and his first in Malaysia since 2018. On Saturday he had finished second in the sprint, which Acosta won.

Continue reading
Paulo Fonseca, in a dark polo shirt, answering questions into a microphone at a press conference
Sports 2 November 2026

Sporting part ways with Rui Borges, and Paulo Fonseca is lined up to replace him

Sporting have opened talks to end Rui Borges's contract, 18 months after he won the league and cup double, following home defeats to LASK and Académico de Viseu. B-team coach Tiago Fernandes takes the Champions League game with Shakhtar. Lyon's Paulo Fonseca is the club's pick.

Rui Borges is no longer Sporting's coach. The club met him on Sunday afternoon and said that evening it had begun talks to end his contract, JN reported, with a successor to be named shortly. Every report points the same way: Paulo Fonseca, who is still in charge at Lyon. In the meantime the B-team coach, Tiago Fernandes, takes over. His first game is hardly gentle. Sporting face Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Continue reading
Ciara Mageean, in Ireland's green kit, smiles holding the Irish tricolour across her shoulders at Munich's Olympic Stadium in 2022
Sports 1 November 2026

Ciara Mageean, Ireland's European 1500m champion, dies at 34

The Portaferry middle-distance runner died on the morning of 1 November, 16 months after revealing stage four bowel cancer. She won European gold in Rome in 2024, ran at two Olympics and holds four Irish records.

Ciara Mageean has died aged 34. Her family announced it on Sunday morning, 1 November, in a brief statement on her social media, saying she passed away at 6.30am surrounded by her loved ones. Within hours Athletics Ireland said it was deeply saddened, describing her as a much-loved and inspirational figure whose courage and warmth would leave a lasting legacy.

Continue reading
Kimi Antonelli standing on top of his Mercedes in parc fermé, helmet on, celebrating a win
Sports 1 November 2026

Kimi Antonelli is F1's youngest ever champion after third place in Mexico

Kimi Antonelli sealed the 2026 Formula 1 title with third place at the Mexico City Grand Prix, becoming the youngest world champion in the sport's history at 20. Max Verstappen won the race ahead of polesitter Lewis Hamilton.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli is the Formula 1 world champion. The 20-year-old Mercedes driver finished third at the Mexico City Grand Prix, well clear of the ninth place he needed, and wrapped up the title with four rounds still to run. Max Verstappen won the race, holding off Lewis Hamilton to the flag. Ferrari undid itself on lap one: Hamilton and Charles Leclerc clashed at Turn 4, both went off, and Leclerc was handed a five-second penalty before recovering…

Continue reading
Victor Froholdt, wearing number 8, and Gabri Veiga, wearing 10, on the pitch in Porto's white away kit
Sports 1 November 2026

Porto 4-0 Estoril makes it ten league wins from ten

At the Dragão, Froholdt (4'), Borja Sainz (64'), André Silva (70') and Gabri Veiga (73') scored against the bottom side. Porto have 30 points from a possible 30, eight clear of Benfica (who have a game in hand) and nine clear of Sporting.

Porto beat Estoril 4-0 at the Dragão on Saturday night, which leaves them with a perfect record after ten rounds of the Liga: ten games, ten wins, 30 points. Benfica are on 22 with a game in hand. Sporting have 21. Francesco Farioli rotated his side 72 hours after reaching the League Cup final four, and it barely mattered. Four minutes in, Borja Sainz's shot was deflected, Pepê picked up the loose ball and squared it for Victor Froholdt to tap in.

Continue reading