Ronaldo’s CBF presidential hopes dashed as federations back Rodrigues

SAO PAULO: Brazilian football legend Ronaldo has dropped his bid to become president of the country’s football federation after most regional federations backed the re-election of current chief Ednaldo Rodrigues.

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

"If the majority of those who have the power to decide feel that football is in good hands, it does not matter what I think," he quipped.

The 48-year-old said in December that he wanted to take the reins of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) to address a "deep crisis" the sport is facing nationally.

However, the two-time World Cup winner said 23 of the 27 regional federations representing the various states of Brazil refused to listen to his proposals.

Instead, he said they had expressed their "support for the re-election" of current president Ednaldo Rodrigues in 2026.

Rodrigues has been criticised for turning to interim coaches for the national team after Tite’s departure following Brazil’s quarter-final exit at the 2022 World Cup while waiting for Carlo Ancelotti to arrive.

That never materialised, as Ancelotti decided to stay with Real Madrid, with Dorival Junior eventually being appointed at the start of last year.