Artificial intelligence has chosen Cristiano Ronaldo's best World Cup goal

Artificial intelligence has chosen Cristiano Ronaldo's best World Cup goal

Out of the 8 goals CR7 scored in his five World Cup appearances, AI determined which one was the best.

Cristiano Ronaldo has delighted soccer fans with 975 career goals over more than two decades. Eight of them were scored with Portugal in the five World Cups he has played in.

Now, just days before the start of the 2026 World Cup, one of the most recurring debates among soccer fans has resurfaced: What was Cristiano Ronaldo’s best goal in the World Cups? And while opinions are often divided, artificial intelligence seems to have a clear answer.

AI Picks CR7’s Best World Cup Goal

According to an analysis conducted by AI models and shared by DSports, Cristiano’s best goal in World Cup history was the spectacular free kick he scored against Spain during the group stage of Russia 2018.

During the match, played on June 15 of that year, Portugal was trailing 3-2 with 88 minutes on the clock, and it looked as though the Portuguese would start the tournament with a loss. However, Ronaldo stepped up once again to change the course of history.

With a perfect strike from the edge of the box, the Portuguese captain curled the ball into the top corner with a right-footed shot, leaving the wall and Spanish goalkeeper David de Gea with no chance. The goal sealed the 3-3 draw and capped off a memorable performance by the forward, who scored a historic hat-trick that night at Fisht Stadium.

According to the AI, the selection is not based solely on the technical quality of the strike, but also on the context of the match and the emotional impact of the goal.

Cristiano scored one goal at Germany 2006, two at South Africa 2010, and one more at Brazil 2014. He added four in Russia 2018 and one more in Qatar 2022, all in the group stage. But, as if that weren’t enough, if CR7 scores in this upcoming 2026 World Cup, he will be the only player to have scored in six consecutive tournaments.

Furthermore, with another goal, he would dethrone his compatriot Pepe as the oldest goalscorer in World Cup history, who scored against Switzerland at Qatar 2022 at the age of 39 years and 283 days.

Meanwhile, Portugal will be in Group K and will play its first match against the Democratic Republic of the Congo on Wednesday, June 17. It will then face Uzbekistan on the 23rd and Colombia on the 27th.