Who is the GOAT, Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi? The question of who is the greatest of all time of football between the Portuguese Legend and the Argentine phenomenon is the most asked question by worldwide football fans for the past decade since the “Diego Maradona or Pele?” debate.
Determining who is the real GOAT isn’t as hard as it seem, we can simply do that by referring all their achievement, but one’s personal preference could cloud judgement on the matter. So, the answer could be further from the truth.
Thus why, ByteHub has gathered all data and statistics of both players since their first match and make a comparison, so you are equipped with facts when asked the same question in future encounters.
Cristiano Ronaldo vs Lionel Messi: Player Profile
| Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro | Full Name | Lionel Andrés Messi |
| Portuguese | Nationality | Argentine |
| 39 | Age | 37 |
| 5 February 1985 | Born | 24 June 1987 |
| Sporting Lisbon (2002 – 2003) Manchester United (2003 – 2009) Real Madrid (2009 – 2018) Juventus (2018 – 2021) Manchester United (2021 – 2022) Al-Nassr (2023 – Present) | Clubs | Barcelona (2004 – 2021) Paris Saint-German (2021 – 2023) Inter Miami (2023 – Present) |
Both players have dedicated their lifetime to top-flight clubs of the respective league, with Ronaldo leading the competition for served 5 major clubs and won at least 1 title with each club.
Messi’s loyalty to his mother club Barcelona is like a double-edge sword. While Messi’s fans see this as a good thing to have, the haters criticize him for don’t have the guts to rock the status quo. This is one of the major contributors to many people are in favour of Ronaldo as the real GOAT as he is not afraid to changes and is always able to achieve victorious results despite which club he is playing.
Cristiano Ronaldo vs Lionel Messi: Who has the most goals?
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Season | Lionel Messi |
| 5 | 2002-03 | – |
| 6 | 2003-04 | – |
| 9 | 2004-05 | 1 |
| 12 | 2005-06 | 8 |
| 23 | 2006-07 | 17 |
| 42 | 2007-08 | 16 |
| 26 | 2008-09 | 38 |
| 33 | 2009-10 | 47 |
| 53 | 2010-11 | 53 |
| 60 | 2011-12 | 73 |
| 55 | 2012-13 | 60 |
| 51 | 2013-14 | 41 |
| 61 | 2014-15 | 58 |
| 51 | 2015-16 | 41 |
| 42 | 2016-17 | 54 |
| 44 | 2017-18 | 45 |
| 28 | 2018-19 | 51 |
| 37 | 2019-20 | 31 |
| 36 | 2020-21 | 38 |
| 24 | 2021-22 | 11 |
| 17 | 2022-23 | 21 |
| 24 | 2023-24 | 11 |
| 739 | Total | 715 |
Based on the data, both individuals have scored over 700 goals in their career so far, with Ronaldo leading the race with 24 goals ahead of Messi. But it is in one condition that the Portuguese Legend entered the pro scene two seasons earlier than his rival.
Even though Ronaldo has more overall goals, but Messi outclass the former with a higher scoring average (37 goals per season) and achieved the unachievable – 73 goals in 2011-12, while Ronaldo’s highest goal of the season is in 2014-15, where he scored 61 goals in the season.
Cristiano Ronaldo vs Lionel Messi: Who has the most assists?
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Season | Lionel Messi |
| 4 | 2002-03 | – |
| 6 | 2003-04 | – |
| 8 | 2004-05 | – |
| 8 | 2005-06 | 3 |
| 14 | 2006-07 | 3 |
| 7 | 2007-08 | 13 |
| 9 | 2008-09 | 17 |
| 8 | 2009-10 | 11 |
| 16 | 2010-11 | 23 |
| 15 | 2011-12 | 30 |
| 12 | 2012-13 | 15 |
| 14 | 2013-14 | 14 |
| 21 | 2014-15 | 27 |
| 15 | 2015-16 | 23 |
| 11 | 2016-17 | 16 |
| 8 | 2017-18 | 18 |
| 10 | 2018-19 | 19 |
| 5 | 2019-20 | 25 |
| 5 | 2020-21 | 12 |
| 3 | 2021-22 | 14 |
| 4 | 2022-23 | 19 |
| 11 | 2023-24 | 11 |
| 214 | Total | 313 |
Unsurprisingly, Messi has more assists than Ronaldo as Messi is often deployed as right-winger while Ronaldo is a striker. The role difference between Messi and Ronaldo has given Messi the upper hand when comes to goal assists.
Regardless their role difference, Messi’s ability to create goal opportunities for himself and his teammate is one of the major reasons why football fans see him as the GOAT.
Cristiano Ronaldo vs Lionel Messi: Who did better in Champions League
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Champions League Stats | Lionel Messi |
| 183 | Appearances | 163 |
| 140 | Goals | 129 |
| 0.77 | Goals per game | 0.79 |
| 5 | Champions League Titles | 3 |
The Greatest of All Time of football might not have been decided, but the Greatest Player of UEFA Champions League or Mr. UCL is in the bag of Ronaldo as he amassed an unrivalled collection of records in the UEFA Champions League. These include but not limited to:
- Most UEFA Champions League appearances: 183
- Most UEFA Champions League goals: 140
- Most goals in a UEFA Champions League season: 17 (2013/14)
- UEFA Champions League top scorer: 2007/08, 2012/13, 2013/14, 2014/15, 2015/16, 2016/17, 2017/18
- Most UEFA Champions League final wins: 5
- Only player to score in three UEFA Champions League finals
- Only player to score in 11 straight UEFA Champions League games
- Most UEFA Club Footballer/Best Player/Men’s Player awards: 4 (2008, 2014, 2016, 2017)
Although Ronaldo has total dominance over UCL, but Messi has a fairly record in UCL. Ronaldo’s dominance will likely last for a very long time as Messi joined Inter Miami FC that is not part of Champions League participating teams, thus putting a full stop to the UCL debate.
Click here to read Cristiano Ronaldo vs Lionel Messi: Who is the GOAT? (PART 2)
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