Ronaldo suggested this month that he intends for the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico to be his final major tournament before his inevitable retirement.
When questioned about his future during an interview at the TOURISE Riyadh event, having previously told Piers Morgan Uncensored last week that he would hang up his boots "soon", Ronaldo initially quipped "soon" meant "in 10 years" time.
Now, speaking in association with Kasinohai, Campbell told GOAL that the former Real Madrid and Manchester United icon could play for years to come and the decision is purely down to him.
“It’s one of those, it’s entirely down to him. It’s not going to be your usual ‘my body’s aching and I can’t do this anymore, I’m constantly getting injured’.
“He’s so dedicated still. If he wanted to play for another three, four, five years, I’m sure he’s more than capable of doing it. It’s incredible to see such a specimen keep going.”
When asked what makes Ronaldo special, Campbell revealed his commitment to improvement even at the end of training.
“Loads of things! He was the first out on the training pitch and last in. He lived and breathed football. Everything that he did was in preparation for either his next training session or his next game.
“Like we all do when we first start playing football, he had that enthusiasm for learning and getting better. He used to go off at the end of a training session with a ball and go all round Carrington - the 14 pitches - doing dribbling. You could see that he was determined to be better. As we’ve all seen in the years after that, he carried on and is still doing it to this day.”
Ronaldo is under contract at Al-Nassr until after his 42nd birthday, after signing a deal worth a minimum £492M over two years earlier in 2025. Even after the World Cup next year, Ronaldo is likely to play for a number of years after as he chases down 1000 career goals.