Cristiano and 7 'old' men aim to emulate a 40-year-old King at the World Cup

When Dino Zoff lifted the 1982 World Cup with Italy, the nation's media dubbed him 'Il Re Quarantenne' or the 40-year-old King. He became the oldest captain to lift the coveted trophy after Italy beat West Germany 3-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid.

Between 1986 and 2022, six World Cups have featured one 40-plus player each, with Egypt's Essam El Hadary holding the record as the 'oldest' at 45 during the 2018 edition in Russia.

Incredible as it sounds, FIFA World Cup 2026 will shatter that 'old' record as eight players, aged 40 or above, are set to feature. They are: Cristiano Ronaldo (41) of Portugal, Luka Modric (40) of Croatia, Edin Dzeko (40) of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Craig Gordon (43) of Scotland, Guillermo Ochoa (40) of Mexico, Vozinha (40) of Cape Verde, Manuel Neuer (40) of Germany and Fernando Muslera (40 on June 16) of Uruguay.

Argentina's talisman, Lionel Messi, undoubtedly a wise man of football, will only turn 39 on June 24. His nemesis, Ronaldo, is the oldest outfield player in the World Cup of North America (co-hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada) to be held from June 11 to July 19.

Ronaldo will be eager to add to his tally of eight World Cup goals, but he would still not be the oldest scorer at the grandest stage. Iconic Cameroonian striker Roger Milla will hold on to that record as he was 42 when he netted against Russia in the 1994 tournament.

Scotland's Gordon is expected to be back-up to Angus Gunn, and even if he played, the Hearts man would be the second-oldest goalkeeper after El Hadary. 

Portugal coach Roberto Martinez is not concerned about his ageing superstar. “None have lived what he has in the number of decisive games he’s played over his career," Martinez said about Ronaldo. 

“He also brings experience in decisive moments that nobody else in the squad can match.” Let us hope Martinez is right because we adore our footballing statesmen, don't we?