Cristiano Ronaldo enters the 2026 World Cup at age 41 as Portugal’s primary set-piece specialist and designated penalty taker, yet traders price the chance he converts a direct free-kick goal at just 22 percent. Portugal’s group-stage schedule and potential knockout run offer limited matches, while modern defensive organization and goalkeepers routinely neutralize long-range threats. Ronaldo’s recent hamstring recovery and reduced explosiveness further limit high-quality free-kick situations compared with his prime. Although he remains the focal point of Portugal’s attack and continues scoring free kicks at club level, direct free-kick goals remain statistically rare events even for elite takers, supporting the strong market lean toward “No.”