Ronaldo withdraws from Brazilian football presidency race

Brazilian football great Ronaldo has announced he is withdrawing from the race for the presidency of the country's football governing body, citing a lack of support from regional federations.

"After publicly declaring my desire to be a candidate for the presidency of the CBF during the next election, I'm officially withdrawing this intention," the two-time Ballon d'Or winner wrote on social media on 13 March.

"If the majority of those who have the power to decide feel that football is in good hands, it doesn't matter what I think," he added.

The 48-year-old first expressed his ambition to lead the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) in december, saying he wanted to tackle the "deep crisis" in the country's football. However, he revealed that 23 of the 27 regional federations rejected his proposals and instead backed the re-election of current president Ednaldo Rodrigues in 2026.

Rodrigues has faced criticism for his handling of the national team following Tite's departure after the 2022 World Cup quarter-finals. His decision to rely on interim coaches while waiting for Carlo Ancelotti to take over backfired when the Italian chose to remain at Real Madrid, leading to Dorival Junior's appointment at the start of last year.