Messi vs. Ronaldo: Who Is the GOAT?

Messi vs Ronaldo: who is the GOAT? It’s the question that defines a generation – and depending on who you ask, the answer is either statistical dominance or soulful genius. If greatness is measured in silverware, goals and longevity, Cristiano Ronaldo’s clinical supremacy makes an almost irrefutable case. But if football is an art form, a vehicle for transcendent beauty and raw emotional resonance, then Lionel Messi has already painted his masterpiece. Eight Ballon d’Ors, a World Cup, and countless moments of brilliance that rewired how we see the game — the Argentine’s résumé speaks with quiet, devastating authority.

Still, the magic of this debate lies not in absolutes, but in what each player means to us. Do you lean toward perfection forged through power and precision, or the kind of genius that feels like instinct? Do you trust the numbers or the feeling in your gut when the ball hits the net?

The Game Magazine columnist Andy Murray dives deep into football’s greatest modern rivalry — read the full story.

Messi vs. Ronaldo: Who Is the GOAT?

By Andy Murray

Selecting the greatest song of all-time is a notoriously tricky endeavour, one that has occupied the popular music press for much of the 60 years since San Francisco critics Jann Wenner and Ralph J Gleason decided a curly-haired upstart from Minnesota’s six-minute rail against the cynical business to which he found himself wedded was so good they’d have to call their new magazine Rolling Stone.

Assuming you don’t have a nascent publication in need of a name, you’ve got two options. The most basic metric is to crunch the numbers – simple, clean, clinical – and the other is to go with something so viscerally unique, its unparalleled genius stirs the dormant teenager within into wide-eyed wonder. So it is that White Christmas by Bing Crosby and Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit – respectively the best-selling single of all time and the devastating high-water mark of a singular genius – have the strongest cases to the title.

Picking the best footballer to ever do it is no less fraught with difficulty. Since Diego Maradona’s ascension to sit alongside Pele in the late 1980s, the intra-generational pair bestrode the sport’s greatest of all time conversation. Johan Cruyff, Zinedine Zidane, (the Brazilian) Ronaldo, and Ronaldinho got close, but none had the big two’s omnipotence. The Brazilian was O Rei, the King, whose regal countenance and chino energy made him the darling of the establishment, while the Argentine street urchin was the anarchic iconoclast who loved to watch the world burn. Debate raged. No one agreed.

Then Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi happened. Whether accurate or not, plenty, this writer included, will never shake the belief that those past icons retain a unique allure – football had the necessary tools for the GOAT age. For the past two decades, CR7 and the Flea have transcended a team sport to such an extent that they are entities in and of themselves, with competing armies of fans whose sole allegiance is to a player, not the club they represent – one year it’s Real Madrid and Barcelona, the next Al Nassr and Inter Miami.

Ronaldo vs Messi is a semi-confected rivalry made for the internet era. Football is about more than just counting trophies, goals, assists, and salaries, but social media echo chambers pore through such statistics to ensure their favourite’s pre-eminence. By the start of 2025, they shared 78 trophies for club and country: Messi’s 45 to Ronaldo’s 33. Ah, CR7 fanboys would counter, but the Portuguese has won more Champions Leagues (five to four) and won every domestic honour in England, Spain and Italy, while Messi had the comfort blanket of a truly great Barcelona under Pep Guardiola and a PSG side that would simply have to turn up to win Ligue 1.

The only players to hit more than 800 goals in competitive fixtures, Ronaldo scores more goals, and is honing in on becoming the first player to 1,000, and has more international caps and goals than anyone else. Take away CR7’s penalties – rightly or wrongly, the moniker ‘Penaldo’ has long since stuck – and Messi has the edge. Include assists, and the Argentine is way ahead.

Then there’s the Ballon d’Or. Though established in 1956 to crown the European footballer of the year, the game’s biggest individual prize was little more than an extra laurel when Ronaldo, having just won the Premier League and Champions League with Manchester United, picked up his first in 2008. It has since mushroomed into an event with its own life force that players openly covet. The furore surrounding Vinicius Jr. not winning the 2024 edition – Real Madrid refusing to send a delegation when they found out the forward had lost the vote to Manchester City’s Rodri – is proof of how the Messi vs Ronaldo duopoly has infected modern football. Neymar, seduced by Ballon d’Or-winning prospects away from Messi’s shadow, defenestrated his own career by swapping Barcelona for PSG in 2017. Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Jr. want the gong more than their next breath, and even Trent Alexander-Arnold has spoken of wanting to be the first full-back to win it.

With the exception of Luka Modric in 2018, from 2008 to 2021, either Messi or Ronaldo won every award. The former has eight to the latter’s five, predominantly thanks to Argentina’s recent Copa America and World Cup successes, yet if you prefer consistent success, then CR7 has 18 total nominations to Messi’s 16.

The Ballon d’Or’s most recent edition is proof of the changing of the guard – for the first time since 2003, neither player appeared on the 30-man shortlist. Many argue the end of the era came when Messi left PSG for the more sedate MLS life at Inter Miami in June 2023, Ronaldo having joined Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia the previous January after a spectacular fallout with Erik ten Hag at Manchester United. Not even a manufactured friendly before the start of the 2024 MLS season could bring the sport’s apex predators together – Messi made a late cameo, Ronaldo missed it altogether through injury.

The participants seemed to have accepted the passing of time. “The rivalry is gone,” said Ronaldo. “It was good, the spectators liked it. We shared the stage for 15 years and ended up being, I’m not saying friends, but we are professional colleagues, and we respect each other. “He makes his way, I make mine. He’s done well, from what I’ve seen. It’s about continuing, the legacy continues. Those who like Cristiano Ronaldo don’t have to hate Messi.”

Yet they do, primarily because familiarity has bred contempt. In 37 past meetings, there have been 17 Messi wins, 11 Ronaldo victories and nine draws. Their last competitive engagement was Juventus’ 3-0 gubbing of Barça in the Champions League in December 2020. Ronaldo scored a hat-trick. At no other stage in football history have two potential GOATs co-existed in the same era. Beginning with Alfredo Di Stefano in the 1950s, Pele, Cruyff, Maradona, Zidane, the original Ronaldo, and Ronaldinho all bled into one another. Ronaldo and Messi have given football its first Ali-Frazier, Prost-Senna or Federer-Nadal-Djokovic.

The nine seasons in which they were in the same league at two clubs – Real Madrid and Barcelona – that actively despise each other helped establish that at-times toxic narrative. The four Clasicos in 18 days in April 2011 nearly descended into open warfare, not least between managers Guardiola and Jose Mourinho, but for all the antipathy, they featured two players at the peak of their powers. Ronaldo was 26, Messi 23, the former scoring the winner in the Copa del Rey final and the latter a mesmeric individual goal in a Champions League semi-final at the Bernabeu.

“They are better players because of the existence of the other,” Ronaldo’s former Portugal team-mate Costinha told FFT in 2022. “It’s a healthy competition. When you have two players like that, they obviously inspire each other for further achievements. During their career, only Neymar appeared to kind of compete with them. Perhaps Iniesta, too. But nothing like Messi and Cristiano.”

Their longevity, helped by modern nutrition, fitness, and a crackdown on tackles of excessive force, is extraordinary. Ronaldo has always been direct, almost brutalist, in always picking the path of least resistance to goal, a ruthless methodology that has evolved from fleet-of-foot winger too often bullied off the ball into today’s centre-forward that seldom leaves the penalty box. Messi’s genius has always been more circuitous, relying on ethereal brilliance. It is not for nothing that there is a species of lizard, Liolaemus messii, named after him.

A study by the University of Coruna in 2011 at their respective peaks showed what the eyes have always told us. Messi is quicker over short distances and Ronaldo is dominant over longer sprints – in the first five metres Messi can reach 12mph and Ronaldo 11mph, but over 12m – 16m the Portuguese hits 18 pm to the Argentinian’s 17mph. Neither can manage that now. Messi is a No.10 who can find pockets and plays for moments, while CR7 has slowed to rely on cunning and his carefully honed eye for goal. Though Inter Miami finished the regular MLS season as Supporters’ Shield winners, they blew up in the playoffs, while Al Nassr have yet to win a Saudi title or AFC Champions League with Ronaldo.

Money is an undoubted factor in their respective moves to the Middle East and the United States – Ronaldo’s new deal guarantees $204m a year, while Messi is believed to earn $150m in salary and endorsements when his contract ends in 2026 – but legacy also matters. Messi has the option to take up a franchise in the future, while Ronaldo has a stake in Al Nassr as part of his deal.

Semi-retirement means international football remains possible even at their advanced ages: Ronaldo will be 41 when the 2026 World Cup starts, Messi will turn 39 mid-tournament. Representing their country not only motivates them like never before, they’re both shrewd enough to know that international football offers the best chance of a legacy boost. Argentina’s recent dominance in winning the two most recent editions of the Copa America and the World Cup have blown apart the remaining barriers to Messi achieving GOAT status.

Despite being the first of the two to win a major international honour, Ronaldo has yet to rescale the heights of EURO 2016. Forced off in the first half of the final against hosts France, CR7 provided a constant presence on the sideline, but he wasn’t on the pitch for his ‘moment’. It’s not hard to see why he carries on, or why he remains captain and an undisputable starter. His goals qualify Portugal for major tournaments but it has been nine games at European championships or World Cups since he last scored at a finals. The paradox with Ronaldo is that Portugal have a goalscoring fear factor when he plays, but they now play better without him.

“Sooner or later, we will have to face the decision of the departure of a brilliant player, who left his mark on Portuguese football, Cristiano,” said Ronaldo’s former coach Carlos Queiroz. “The big decisions for the future must be taken now to prevent the national team from going into decline. We have a new generation of players who can guarantee success, but if we go into decline, getting back on track will be more difficult.”

Messi’s relationship with Argentina is more complex. For much of Messi’s first decade playing for his country, his leaving at 13 for Barcelona for the growth hormone treatment that only Los Cules could afford was a frequent stick with which to beat him. Sure, he was appreciated, but he wasn’t truly loved. Plenty doubted his mentality. One newspaper even recruited a psychoanalyst to question Messi’s state of mind and whether leaving Argentina at an early age was preventing him from performing to his best for the national team. Che Guevara suffered similarly for leaving his homeland early.

Though he reversed his decision after 46 days, Messi’s temporary international retirement in 2017 highlighted his depth of feeling. Less overtly confrontational than his eternal rival, the Argentine can be stand-offish and hard for coaches to penetrate. “Messi’s motto is to win, and anything that gets him on board with that goal he will embrace,” Diego Simeone, the Argentine Atletico Madrid manager, told Ole. “Slap after slap, he was always there. And just like in life, you persist – you persist until it happens.”

Lionel Scaloni has made it happen. The architect of Argentina’s two Copas America and World Cup has built a team to get the best from his star, from Rodrigo De Paul’s industry to Alexis Mac Allister’s creativity and the clinical finishing of Julian Alvarez. They’re more direct and make better use of their captain’s off-the-cuff brilliance in transition. Of Messi’s nine permanent Argentina managers, Scaloni is the only one to have a demonstrable plan.

If Messi’s decision to continue post-2022 is indicative of a player already at peace with his career achievements, who simply enjoys representing his country, Ronaldo’s desire to turn out for Portugal stems from a more feral need. Sure, a World Cup wouldn’t hurt his GOAT ambitions, but extending those world-leading individual records is what drives him – 1,000 competitive goals, reaching 250 international caps, and going beyond 150 Portugal goals. Portugal boss Roberto Martinez knows that preventing his captain from doing so, despite Francisco Trincao’s increasing prominence, is to sign his own death warrant in charge of A Seleçao.

Ronaldo has also revised his thoughts about ‘the rivalry’ and frames the GOAT as an individual pursuit.

“I’m the best player in football history. I haven’t seen anyone better than me in football history, and I’m saying the truth from my heart,” Ronaldo told La Sexta in early 2025. “One thing is taste. If you like Messi, Pele, Maradona, I understand that and I respect that, but saying Ronaldo isn’t complete … I’m the most complete. I haven’t seen anybody better than me, and I say it from the heart.

“Who’s the player in history who’s scored the most goals with their head, their left foot, penalties, free kicks? I was looking the other day, and not being left-footed, I’m in the top 10 goal scorers with their left foot in history – and with my head and with my right foot and penalties. All of them.

“Who’s the best goalscorer in history? It’s about numbers. Full stop.”

In the summer of 2026, planet football descends on the USA and Canada. Argentina were the first South American to qualify, and Portugal are already guaranteed at least play-off spot after reaching the Nations League finals, assuming they can’t top a group containing Hungary, the Republic of Ireland, and Armenia. Realistically, only injury will prevent Ronaldo and Messi from becoming the only players to appear at six World Cup finals.

“When they will not be there anymore, we will realise what they have given us,” says Arsene Wenger. “Both of them. I always refuse to make a hierarchy on that because they are two different players. Completely different players, but two exceptional players who have shown the world for 15 years how great football can be.”

Pele stands alone among the GOAT possibles in signing off at a World Cup with any degree of success, winning a record third title in his final tournament appearance, having scored or assisted 53 per cent of Brazil’s goals in 1970. Maradona’s last World Cup act was to fail a drugs test at USA’94, never to wear the Argentina shirt again. Cruyff lost the 1974 final and four years later had retired from internationals after a kidnapping attempt on his family. Bobby Charlton was substituted to save his legs in a 1970 quarter-final with England leading 2-1, only for West Germany to win 3-2. Neither George Best nor Di Stefano played at a World Cup. Zidane headbutted his way to a red in the World Cup final, his last action as a professional footballer.

If 2026 really is to be their last dance – how many times have we said that in the past decade? – Then legacies will be at stake. Their sashays, ganchos and pirouettes now lack the speed, precision and outright wonder that catapulted Ronaldo and Messi to the pinnacle of their sport’s all-time conversation, but such fallibility only adds to the intrigue of ageing stars attempting to hold back time’s inexorable march. Portugal and Argentina have only met twice – both friendlies, the last in 2014 – since the pair’s international debuts. What price a first competitive meeting in the World Cup final to settle the GOAT debate forever? In truth, not even that would do it.

Much like the subjectivity written into boxing scorecards, it depends on what you like: the clinical statistics or the artist that makes you feel? Bing Crosby or Kurt Cobain? Put it this way, I’ve always had a soft spot for long-haired lefties that speak directly to my soul. Here we are now, entertain us.

Read more pieces by Andy Murray in The Game Magazine.