FIFA was recently forced to remove a promotional poster for the upcoming 2026 World Cup after a massive backlash from football fans, who noticed the glaring absence of Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo.

The image featured players from nations already qualified for the expanded 48-team tournament including Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, and Erling Haaland, left out the iconic Portuguese captain.

Instead of Ronaldo, Portugal was represented by his teammate Bruno Fernandes.

The decision quickly caused a storm on social media. Fans were outraged that a player of Ronaldo’s stature, who is likely heading for a sixth and final World Cup appearance, was excluded.

The omission led many to question FIFA’s marketing and priorities.

One fan remarked on his global appeal, stating, “FIFA leaving Cristiano Ronaldo off the official World Cup poster is hard to understand. From a marketing point of view, he’s the most influential athlete on the planet, the kind of face that sells a tournament.”

Within hours of the post going live on its official X (formerly Twitter) account, FIFA deleted the poster entirely due to the intense criticism.

Another comment summarised the widespread feeling, “2026 World Cup poster without Ronaldo? Feels strange. He was the face of every tournament for nearly two decades along with Messi.”

However, FIFA has not released an official statement explaining why the poster was removed or why Ronaldo was left off in the first place.