FIFA Anomaly: Cristiano Ronaldo-less World Cup Poster

It is very strange when one of the greatest footballers in history can be forgotten just before his final appearance in the World Cup. However, that is what happened to Cristiano Ronaldo. Ronaldo's star power is not so bright that FIFA designed the promotional poster for the World Cup without his photo.

The 2026 World Cup will commence in approximately 200 days. In preparation for this grand event, FIFA typically releases promotional posters. This time, the poster design features a photo of a football player's face representing the countries that have qualified. The selected player representing their country is one who possesses a strong appeal, characterized by a large fan base or is currently rising in prominence.

Brazil is represented by Vinicius Junior. Meanwhile, the face of Kylian Mbappe represents France. From Asia, there are Wataru Endo (Japan) and Son Heung-min (South Korea). To represent the Netherlands, FIFA chose a photo of Memphis Depay, while the charm of Erling Haaland is used as a marker for Norway's participation.

Ronaldo doesn't need posters. Posters need Ronaldo.

One striking aspect is that FIFA featured a photo of Bruno Fernandes as the symbol of Portugal instead of the face of the captain, Ronaldo. The "absence" of Ronaldo's photo in the official World Cup promotional poster sparked outrage among his fans. They flooded the comment section of FIFA's post with expressions of disappointment.

"Did the editor forget about Ronaldo? The poster maker is definitely a 100 percent Messi fan," one of them said.

"Ronaldo doesn't need posters. Posters need Ronaldo," wrote another account.

The wave of comments was so massive that FIFA became overwhelmed and decided to delete the poster post a few days later. A small oversight had fatal consequences. FIFA failed to realize that Ronaldo still has a very large and fanatical fan base, even though he is no longer playing in the top European leagues.

If not playing in a highly competitive league is the reason FIFA overlooked Ronaldo, then Lionel Messi should also be excluded from the list. Messi, who plays in Major League Soccer with Inter Miami, was still selected to represent Argentina in the poster.

The star factor prompted FIFA to include Mohamed Salah (Egypt) in the poster. However, the same reason does not apply to Ronaldo. In fact, in terms of social media followers, Ronaldo far surpasses Salah. Salah's declining performance with Liverpool also did not prevent FIFA from featuring him in the poster.

The most difficult anomaly to explain is the absence of Ronaldo in the promotional poster at a time when he has announced that the 2026 World Cup will likely be his last stage. From a marketing communication perspective, this momentum should clearly not be missed by FIFA in its promotional materials.

There is no promotional material better than a megastar footballer announcing their farewell to the World Cup. If the goal of creating a poster is to pique public curiosity, the name and narrative surrounding Ronaldo should not be overlooked.

The narrative of the last World Cup alone is already quite marketable, especially when combined with the substantial fan base of Ronaldo. It is very strange that a large organization like FIFA could overlook such momentum. Therefore, it is reasonable that the issue of Ronaldo being treated as a "stepchild" by FIFA has resurfaced. This is especially true when considering Messi, who has long been associated with FIFA and is still used as a poster model. Allegations of FIFA's favoritism towards Messi cannot be denied.

Until now, FIFA has not yet issued an official statement regarding the reason for not including Ronaldo in the poster. After removing the poster, FIFA replaced it with a new design themed "All Eyes Are Now On The Final Draw." The World Cup draw will take place in Washington, USA, on December 5. There, the fate of the World Cup participants will be determined.