Portugal captain, Cristiano Ronaldo, has escaped a FIFA ban ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
The 40-year-old will be available to play in the opening game at next year’s tournament.
Ronaldo was left fearing a suspension following his red card in a qualifying fixture against the Republic of Ireland.
The Al Nassr forward was sent off for elbowing Dara O’Shea and usually, violent conduct is punished with a three-match ban.
But Ronaldo has had the second and third matches suspended for a year.
BBC Sport reports that the fact it was his first red card in 226 international appearances was taken into account.
Ronaldo missed the game against Armenia on November 16 and will now not miss any games in the United States next summer.
A FIFA statement said: “If Cristiano Ronaldo commits another infringement of a similar nature and gravity during the probationary period, the suspension set out in the disciplinary decision shall be deemed automatically revoked and the remaining two matches must be served immediately.”
