The 2026 World Cup now has 42 of the 48 teams confirmed for the competition, and although the final six qualifiers will not be decided until March, most major contenders have already secured their spots. The most enticing prospect for fans is the possibility of a showdown between Cristiano Ronaldo‘s Portugal and Lionel Messi’s Argentina, both of whom have tickets to the World Cup and await the draw to know their rivals.
Anticipating the historic event, FIFA uploaded a poster to their social media channels previewing the tournament. However, they made a blatant omission in the first official poster, and fans quickly seized upon the mistake.
FIFA shared an image featuring a representative from each of the national teams already qualified for the 2026 World Cup. Shockingly, the Portuguese representative featured was Bruno Fernandes and not Cristiano Ronaldo—the all-time leading goalscorer in soccer history, who is set to play in his sixth World Cup, a record he will share with Messi.
“How can Cristiano Ronaldo be missing? He is the biggest face in the sport, no debate,” commented one visibly angry fan on X. “It’s hard to understand FIFA leaving Cristiano Ronaldo out of the official World Cup poster. From a marketing standpoint, he’s the most influential athlete on the planet, the kind of face that sells a tournament,” another fan seconded.
It did not take many more comments for FIFA to make the decisive move to delete the original poster. The post is no longer visible on any of their social media channels related to the tournament and the entity.
The new poster
Logically, FIFA did not issue a statement on the matter, choosing neither to admit they removed the post due to the public comments nor to acknowledge the omission of Cristiano Ronaldo.
The only certainty is that the original poster is gone and has been replaced by a new one, which now features the image of the Portuguese superstar—alongside Lionel Messi holding the World Cup.