By The fan base of sports celebrities is constantly growing in the world. If we talk about the most played or watched sports worldwide, then Football (Soccer) will be at the top of the list. Whether it’s Asian countries, Europeans, or any other country, FIFA World Cup is the most-watched sports competition, with a projected 4 billion fanbase globally, as per WorldAtlas. Chronologically, the football game originated 3000 years ago (13th Century) when it was first played by the Aztecs, a pre-Columbian civilisation in the Americas, who would call it Tchatali. Today, when we hear the word ‘Soccer’, names that hover in our mind include Christiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, John Cryuff, Diego Maradona, etc. But what does it take for them to become “the best football player in the world”? This is the most asked question by the football fanbase. To solve this popular query, we have curated a list of the best football players in the world based on the highest number of goals they made and trophies achieved.
Without further ado, let’s dive in and find out the #1 football player in the world.
Top 6 Best Football Players In The World At Your Glance
| Rank | Players | Nation | Goals | Trophies | FIFA World Cup Win |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | Zinedine Zidane | France | 156 | 15 | 1 |
| 5 | John Cryuff | Netherlands | 433 | 22 | 0 |
| 4 | Christiano Ronaldo | Portugal | 819 | 34 | 0 |
| 3 | Diego Maradona | Argentina | 537 | 12 | 1 (1986) |
| 2 | Pele | Brazil | 767 | 26 | 3 (1958, 1962, 1970) |
| 1 | Lionel Messi | Argentina | 802 | 42 | 1 (2022) |
Let’s talk about these players one by one below in detail:
6. Zinedine Zidane (France)
The most iconic player in football history, Zinedine Zidane is famous for his technical skills in football, for which he claimed the Best FIFA Men’s Coach award in 2017. During his career, he won only one FIFA World Cup in 1988, held in France, where he scored twice in the final match against Brazil. His techniques and excellence in football bagged him the “FIFA World Player Of The Year” award thrice. He has won a total of 15 trophies and made 156 goals. It is said that Zidane was the backbone of France in the FIFA World Cup 2002, 2004 (Europe) and 2006, making him the best football player in the world.
5. John Cryuff (Netherlands)
Another best football player in the world in our list is John Cryuff, who is known to be the most influential personality in football history for his contribution as a player. The great thing about Cryuff is that he won three consecutive European Cup titles in 1971, 1973, and 1974. Unfortunately, he never made the FIFA World Cup title in his name but played in the final of the FIFA World Cup held in 1974 against the Netherlands.
4. Christiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
After Messi, Christiano Ronaldo is the second most uttered name among football fans. Some people might consider Ronaldo the best football player in the world, but he does not hold this title. He is titled the greatest goal-scorer in football history. He won five champions league titles, and three of them were in different countries, including Spain, Italy, and England. Though Ronaldo has never been part of a FIFA World Cup winning team, he has won a total of 33 trophies in his career to date.
3. Diego Maradona (Argentina)
Regarded for being the “greatest attacking player in football”, Diego Maradona won the 1986 FIFA World Cup, scoring two goals each in the quarter-finals and semi-finals of the tournaments. He is also remembered as the “Hand Of God” for his most memorable goals in the history of the football World Cup. In 2008, he was titled head coach of Argentina’s national football team. Maradona was part of Argentina’s team that won the FIFA World Cup held in Mexico in 1986 and is known as the greatest soccer player in the world.
2. Pele (Brazil)
Pele is known to be the “first superstar of football”, just like Kapil Dev of Cricket in India. Known to be the three times World Cup winner, Pele made his global appearance with six goals in the 1956 World Cup. He won a total of 3 FIFA World Cups with 12 goals and a total of 767 in his entire football journey. Indeed, he ranked as the second-best football player in the world of his time. Aggregate, Pele has a total of 26 trophies while playing for the club and the country.
1. Lionel Messi (Argentina)
Calling Lionel Messi an emblem of Soccer wouldn’t be wrong because he tops the list of the 10 best football players in the world. Rising from Barcelona’s academy, La Masia, Lionel Messi quickly became the no 1 football player in the world. He won his first Ballon d’Or in 2009 at the age of 22. In 2008, he won the Olympic Gold Medal in Beijing. The turning point came in his life when he added the FIFA World Cup 2022 to his collections. In fact, he is the only player in history who won two Gold Balls in World Cups in 2014 and 2022, making him the best football player in the world.
To Sum Up
After reading this blog, it is clear that Lionel Messi wins the title of the best football player in the world. Though he is an indomitable football player in the world, there were many other players who were undisputed kings of the football arena, like Pele. We believe that Messi will surely secure a top spot in the football world by the time he retires and end up winning more FIFA World Cups in the coming years. We hope you found this blog interesting and enjoyed reading about your favourite football player.
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