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Portugal is very well represented in sports such has Rink hockey, being the country with most world titles. Golf is also worth mentioning, since its greatest players play in the sunny region of the Algarve during the "Algarve Open".

European football is the most popular and practiced sport in Portugal. As of August 2004, the country is ranked 8th in 205 countries by FIFA. Luís Figo is one of the world's top players, but the legendary Eusébio, Rui Costa and Cristiano Ronaldo are also noteworthy. FC Porto crowned its international success by winning the UEFA Cup in 2003 and UEFA Champions League in 2004 as well as local cups. The team also won the Intercontinental Cup in Japan last December, by defeating Colombian champions Once Caldas in the penalty shootouts.

There is African, Brazilian and Asian influences throughtout its culture in various fields, especially those related to food, music, dances and habits. Arabic, Jewish, and Germanic cultures are featherweighting when compared to others.

During the second semester of 2004, a coalition between the PSD (main party) and PP governed Portugal in the 16th constitutional government, led by Pedro Santana Lopes, substituting José Manuel Durão Barroso. Barroso resigned to become President of the European Commission. After dissolution of the Assembly by President Jorge Sampaio, this coalition lost the election on Feb 20, 2005. The victory of José Sócrates, the leader of the PS, is complete with no less than 121 MPs - an unprecendented absolute majority for the PS.

In a survey on nationalism and European issues made by a newspaper in Portugal in 1994, revealed that only 9% of the Portuguese people would consider themselves as very little or not at all nationalist, while 43% consider themselves as a lot or extremely nationalist. But when the question is federalism in Europe, Portuguese people do not see a contradiction between a European identity and nationalism, 51% of the interviewed would even agree with Portugal's integration in a supposed United States of Europe, while 27% would be against (22% do not have an opinion). Portuguese public opinion and media tend to be Europhile, in the EuroBarometer's 2004 Spring survey, 60% of the Portuguese trusted the EU.