With the Copa America 2024 and European Championships 2024 key sporting events this summer, both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi will be amongst the top stars at the tournaments.
Throughout their careers, they have been endlessly compared and contrasted. Cristiano Ronaldo plied his trade for many years at Real Madrid, Lionel Messi was at Barcelona. Both have scored ridiculous amounts of goals and won almost every award it is possible to win.
Yet, the question remains: Who truly reigns supreme? The debate over the greatest footballer of our time, Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi, continues to captivate and divide fans.
In this article, we intend to compare the two superstars across seven key criteria. With the aim of making a valued judgement on who is, definitively, the best.
Remember, bet365 Sport offers extensive betting on Argentina (Lionel Messi) and Portugal (Cristiano Ronaldo) for their respective tournaments this summer.
Let’s now see if we can settle the age-old debate of who is the greatest? Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi?
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The debate will be judged on seven key criteria:
This post aims to look solely at the data, without opinion, initially. Then when we have digested the story of what the data tells us, we can offer a view on whether it is Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi that is really the best.
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Category | Lionel Messi |
| 39 | Age | 36 |
| 5th February 1985 | Date of Birth | 24th June 1987 |
| Funchal, Madeira, Portugal | Place of Birth | Rosario, Argentina |
| 1.87cm (6ft 2”) | Height | 170cm (5ft 7”) |
| 7 | Number (Preferred) | 10 |
| Right | Preferred Foot | Left |
| Sporting Lisbon, Man Utd (x2), Real Madrid, Juventus, Al Nassr | Clubs Played For | Barcelona, Paris St. Germain, Inter Miami |
| Portugal, England, Spain, Italy, Saudi Arabia | Countries Played In | Spain, France, United States |
| Al Nassr | Current Club | Inter Miami |
| £14.75m per month* | Estimated* Salary | £4m per month* |
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Club Data | Lionel Messi |
| 5 | Clubs Played For | 3 |
| 14th August 2002 | Pro Debut | 16th November 2003 |
| 17 | Age at Debut | 16 |
| 1021 | Club Appearances | 914 |
| 765 | Club Goals | 740 |
| 438 | La Liga Apps | 520 |
| 450 | La Liga Goals | 474 |
| 346 | Premier Lge Apps | 0 |
| 145 | Premier Lge Goals | 0 |
| 0 | Ligue 1 Apps | 58 |
| 0 | Ligue 1 Goals | 22 |
| 31 | Portuguese Lge Apps | 0 |
| 5 | Portuguese Lge Goals | 0 |
| 134 | Serie A Apps | 0 |
| 101 | Serie A Goals | 0 |
| 0 | MLS Apps | 18 |
| 0 | MLS Goals | 13 |
| 70 | Saudi Pro Lge Apps | 0 |
| 64 | Saudi Pro Lge Goals | 0 |
| 204 | Continental Cup Apps | 166 |
| 149 | Continental Goals | 131 |
| 88 | Domestic Cup Apps | 83 |
| 48 | Domestic Cup Goals | 56 |
| 29 | Other Club Apps | 37 |
| 21 | Other Club Goals | 33 |
| £209,000,000 | Cumulative Transfer Fees | £0 |
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Club Honours | Lionel Messi |
| 4 | World Club Champs | 3 |
| 5 | Champions League | 4 |
| 2 | Other Continental Wins | 3 |
| 2 | La Liga Titles | 10 |
| 5 | Other League Titles | 2 |
| 9 | Domestic Cup Wins | 15 |
| 4 | Countries title won in | 2 |
| 3 | Countries Cup won in | 3 |
| Cristiano Ronaldo | International Data | Lionel Messi |
| Portugal | Country | Argentina |
| 24 | U15 to U23 Apps | 23 |
| 14 | U15 to U23 Goals | 16 |
| 10 | U21 Apps | 0 |
| 3 | U21 Goals | 0 |
| 20th August 2003 (v Kazakhstan) | Full Int Debut | 17th August 2005 (v Hungary) |
| 18 | Age at Debut | 18 |
| 207 | Full Caps* | 182 |
| 130 | International Goals* | 108 |
| 47 | World Cup Qual App | 64 |
| 36 | World Cup Qual Gls | 31 |
| 22 | FIFA World Cup Apps | 26 |
| 8 | FIFA World Cup Goals | 13 |
| 44 | Eur/Cop Quals Apps | 0 |
| 41 | Eur/Cop Quals Gls | 0 |
| 25 | Euro/Copa Am Apps* | 34 |
| 14 | Euro/Copa Am Gls* | 13 |
| 1 | Other Int Tourn Apps | 15 |
| 0 | Other Int Tourn Goals | 9 |
*These numbers were correct ahead of the start of Euro 2024 and the Copa America 2024.
| Cristiano Ronaldo | International Honours | Lionel Messi |
| 0 | FIFA World Cup Wins | 1 (2022) |
| 1 (2016) | Euro/Copa Am Wins | 1 (2021) |
| 0 | Confed. Cup Wins | 0 |
| 1 (2017) | Nations League Wins | 0 |
| 0 | World Youth Champs | 1 (2005) |
| 0 | Olympic Gold | 1 (2008) |
| 0 | Conmebol/UEFA Cup | 1 (2022) |
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Personal Honours | Lionel Messi |
| 5 | Ballon d’Or | 8 |
| 3 | FIFA World Player of the Year | 8 |
| 4 | European Golden Shoe | 6 |
| 0 | FIFA World Cup Golden Ball | 2 |
| 0 | FIFA World Cup Silver Boot | 1 |
| 1 | FIFA Club World Cup Golden Ball | 2 |
| 0 | FIFA Club World Cup Golden Boot | 0 |
| 1 | FIFA Puskas Award | 0 |
| 7 | UEFA Champs Lge Top Scorer | 6 |
| 0 | Euro/Copa Am Best Player | 2 |
| 1 | Eur/Copa Am Top Goalscorer | 1 |
| 1 | La Liga Player of the Year | 9 |
| 3 | Pichichi Trophy (Top Goalscorer) | 8 |
| 4 | Other League Player of the Year | 0 |
| 3 | Other League Top Goalscorer | 0 |
| 0 | Laureus World Sportsman of Year | 2 |
| 15 | FIFA FIFPRO World 11 First XI | 17 |
| 8 | National Sportsperson of the Year | 4 |
| 5 | National Footballer of the Year | 16 |
| 1 | FIFA Award for Outstanding Career | 0 |
| 4 | Civilian Honours & Awards | 1 |
Here’s how the two compare in head-to-head stats in games where they have played against each other.
| Statistic | Cristiano Ronaldo | Lionel Messi |
| Total Matches Played | 36 | 36 |
| Club Matches Played | 34 | 34 |
| Matches Won | 11 | 17 |
| Matches Drawn | 8 | 8 |
| Matches Lost | 17 | 11 |
| International Matches Played | 2 | 2 |
| Total Goals Scored | 21 | 22 |
| International Goals Scored | 1 | 1 |
| Total Assists | 1 | 12 |
| Goals Per Game Average | 0.58 | 0.61 |
| Minutes Per Goal | 143 | 142.7 |
| Minutes Per Goal Contribution | 136.5 | 92.4 |
| Number of Hat-tricks | 0 | 1 |
| Free Kicks Scored | 0 | 2 |
| Penalties Scored | 6 | 7 |
| Headed Goals | 1 | 2 |
Let’s now draw together all the key data into a final table to compare these two footballing legends.
| Statistic | Cristiano Ronaldo | Lionel Messi |
| Total Club Matches Played | 1021 | 914 |
| Total Club Goals | 765 | 740 |
| Club Goals Per Game | 0.75 | 0.81 |
| Total Internationals Played | 207 | 182 |
| Total International Goals | 130 | 108 |
| Int Goals Per Game | 0.63 | 0.59 |
| International Trophies Won | 2 | 4 |
| League Titles Won | 7 | 12 |
| Domestic Cups Won | 13 | 17 |
| Continental Cups Won | 11 | 10 |
| Leading Goalscorer Titles | 6 | 8 |
| Player of the Year Titles | 5 | 9 |
| Ballon d’Or Titles | 5 | 8 |
| FIFA World Cup Golden Ball | 0 | 2 |
| National Player of the Year | 5 | 16 |
What this data tells us is that both Ronaldo and Messi are far and away the best players of their generation.
In terms of pure appearance and goals data, Ronaldo has the edge, but he is also three years older than Messi.
However, in terms of trophies and personal awards, Messi has won far more in his career at club and international level.
Ronaldo is the embodiment of what hard work, dedication allied to supreme physical attributes and conditioning can achieve for a naturally gifted footballer.
But the difference between the two is so small and it boils down to one thing. Ronaldo is a supreme generational talent rarely seen in the history of football.
But Lionel Messi is a genius. That is the sole difference, and it is why Messi is the better of the two players.
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