Lionel Messi vs. Cristiano Ronaldo: Who is the GOAT? Most impressive records, career statistics, head to head record

Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo? A question with the potential to make or break friendships, workplace relationships, and perhaps even romantic relationships. And yet, one where there may never be a right or wrong answer.

The Pele, Diego Maradona and Johan Cruyff loyalists may see differently, but few aficionados of the game we all love disagree that the two men with 13 Ballons d'Or between them are the greatest to ever step foot onto the hallowed turf.

With Messi now 38 and Ronaldo in his 40s, the end is nigh for the two phenoms, but us fans ought to enjoy one of sport's most exhilarating rivalries for at least one more year ahead of the 2026 World Cup - surely both players' last.

Off the pitch, Messi and Ronaldo have an unwavering mutual respect for one another, even if the latter has admitted that he would not call the pair "friends". On the pitch, the attacking duo continually strive to keep their nose in front of the other, even in the twilight of their captivating careers.

But who can truly lay claim to the title of the footballing GOAT? Here, Sports Mole breaks down Messi and Ronaldo's most impressive statistics, records and head-to-head record, and lets you make your own judgement on who really is the best to ever kick the leather sphere.

Messi vs. Ronaldo: Goals

While the writer of this article may struggle to find the back of the net in five-a-side, Messi and Ronaldo share an astronomical 1,829 efforts between them for both club and country, unsurprisingly putting them at the summit of the official IFFHS goalscorers' list.

However, the outright record belongs to the Portuguese phenomenon, who is credited as the highest male goalscorer in the history of football with 945 efforts, while Messi - who has been active at senior level for two fewer years - boasts 884.

Ronaldo trumps his South American foe when it comes to goals in league action with 575 to 541, although Messi's lengthier spell in La Liga means he is by far and away the highest scorer in Spanish top-flight history with 474 strikes to Ronaldo's 311.

The Al-Nassr attacker trumps Messi when it comes to goals per game in La Liga, though, boasting 1.07 to the Argentine's 0.91, and his total of 140 Champions League goals is also an all-time high above Messi's 129.

Taking every continental competition into account, Ronaldo also leads the way with 173 to Messi's 155, and his unrivalled tally of 141 goals for Portugal also betters Messi's 114 in an Argentine shirt.

Furthermore, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner has bagged 66 hat-tricks compared to Messi's 59, but Ronaldo has never scored 50 goals in a single league season; his all-time best for a single calendar year is 69 in 2013, 22 fewer than Messi's unbelievable 91 in 2012.

Messi vs. Ronaldo: Assists

While Ronaldo is in a class of his own when it comes to putting the ball in the back of the net, he bows to Messi's superiority in the playmaking category, as the latter has set up a teammate 392 times compared to Ronaldo's 258.

The eight-time Ballon d'Or winner provides just over one assist every three appearances on average, whereas his European foe does so once every five matches, and the former's 392 assists is the second most in recorded history behind Ferenc Puskas's 404.

Of Messi's 392 career assists, 192 have come in La Liga - more than any other player in the history of the competition - while Ronaldo provided 95 helpers in the Spanish top flight.

The latter may have a perception of being a more selfish player - as former Real Madrid teammate Rafael van der Vaart once claimed before Ronaldo bit back - but he is not completely inferior in a playmaking sense.

Indeed, Ronaldo has strikingly provided two more assists than Messi in the Champions League - 42 to 40 - although he has played 20 more matches in Europe's premier competition than the South America.

However, Messi's 58 assists for Argentina is significantly superior to Ronaldo's 37 for Portugal, and only Neymar (59 for Brazil) has set up a teammate more times for a senior men's national team.

Messi vs. Ronaldo: Team trophies

Including international trophies at youth level, Messi has hoisted a team honour aloft a remarkable 46 times for club and country over the course of his career, also putting above his long-time on-field rival in this particular category.

Indeed, Ronaldo has collected 10 fewer pieces of silverware with 36 trophies, and perhaps most crucially, never the one that Messi is seemingly primed to kiss in the picture above.

Only one of the pair can lay claim to being a world champion in the international sense, as Messi finally ticked off the last box on his football CV at the 2022 World Cup, which was sandwiched in between 2021 and 2024 Copa America successes.

While Ronaldo has not yet conquered the world with Portugal, his Selecao side triumphed on the continent at the 2016 European Championships, prior to the striker also winning the 2019 and 2025 editions of the UEFA Nations League.

However, Ronaldo can boast one more Champions League winners' medal than his Argentine opponent, taking home five - one with Manchester United and four at Real Madrid - compared to Messi's four during his time at Camp Nou.

The only other team category where Ronaldo comes out on top is the Club World Cup, though, as Messi has clinched an astonishing 13 league titles to Ronaldo's seven, seven domestic cup triumphs to the Portuguese's six, and nine Super Cup successes to his foe's seven.

Messi vs. Ronaldo: Individual trophies

Eight is the magic number for Messi in an individual sense, as the 38-year-old has that exact amount of glistening Ballon d'Or trophies safely tucked away at his home, a record that will surely remain unrivalled for some time.

Messi's unparalleled total makes Ronaldo's five seem a little insignificant in comparison, and while the latter's haul is still nothing short of sensational, the GOAT debate often centres around who has been crowned the world's best on the most occasions.

However, Ronaldo has been nominated for the top accolade on more occasions - 18 to Messi's 16 - and has also been named UEFA's Best Player in Europe four times compared to the South American's three wins in that category.

The Portuguese had to witness Messi dominate the La Liga Player of the Season award, though - from 2008-09 to 2018-19, Messi won nine of the 11 accolades on offer, while Ronaldo collected just one in 2013-14.

Furthermore, Messi has been named in the FIFA FIFPRO World XI on more occasions - 17 to Ronaldo's 15 - and is the only one of the two to win the Laureus Award for Sportsman of the year, doing so in 2020 and 2023.

The pair have shared 10 European Golden Shoe prizes between them, but Messi also leads the way there with six to Ronaldo's four, as well as taking home eight La Liga Golden Boots to Ronaldo's three.

The Portuguese does have one more Champions League Top Scorer prize to his name, but when it comes to Ballon d'Or dominance, there is only one victor.

Messi vs. Ronaldo: Head-to-head record

Whether we will ever see Ronaldo and Messi line up on opposite ends of the centre circle again remains to be seen, but there have already been 37 battles involving the pair, including club friendlies.

Largely thanks to Barcelona's era of La Liga supremacy, Messi leads the way in overall wins with 17 compared to Ronaldo's 11, and there have also been nine instances of the pair shaking hands on a stalemate.

Messi's Blaugrana had a firm stronghold on Ronaldo's Real in the Spanish top flight; from their 18 meetings in La Liga, the latter only emerged victorious four times, while Messi came up trumps on 10 occasions.

The Champions League record is perfectly split down the middle - two victories each and two draws - while the duo also have one triumph apiece from two international friendlies.

Furthermore, there is nothing to split Messi and Ronaldo in terms of head-to-head goals, having both registered 23 strikes in matches against the other, but the former has come up with a brilliant 12 assists compared to Ronaldo's one.

The Argentina international is also the only one to score a hat-trick in this fixture - doing so in El Clasico in March 2014 - but he never scored in a Copa del Rey match against Ronaldo, who in contrast did so on five occasions.

Long after both men have hung up their boots, debates will continue to rage over who could proudly sport the GOAT sticker, but now is the time to enjoy both generational talents while they are - literally - still kicking.