Following his World Cup triumph, Messi has indeed won everything, including seven Ballon d'Or. The Argentine might even be one of the frontrunners to win the Ballon d'Or title in 2024, though he faces stiff competition from Erling Haaland.
With Barcelona, Messi won all possible team trophies available in Spain. He is yet to match this feat in France with PSG, however, with a Coupe de France title still required after they fell short in the Round of 16 of both the 2021/22 and 2022/23 editions.
Ronaldo has scored a record number of international goals and appearances, but Messi has won more Ballon d'Or awards (7). Messi has spent most of his playing career in Spain and France, while Ronaldo has played in Portugal, England, Spain, and Italy.
Messi has now won three trophies with PSG, five with Argentina and 35 with former club Barcelona. The only other player to have won 43 career trophies is Messi's ex-Barcelona teammate Dani Alves.
They are two of the most decorated footballers ever, having won a combined 76 major trophies (Messi 42, Ronaldo 34) during their senior careers thus far, and have regularly broken the 50-goal barrier in a single season. They are the only two players to score over 800 goals each in their careers for club and country.
As incredible as it may sound, there is only one major competition that Messi has played in and not won since he turned professional almost two decades ago: the Coupe de France.
An analysis of the players' statistics reveals that Ronaldo was labelled the undisputed GOAT of soccer with the most overall goals, Champions League goals, club goals and assists, and international caps and goals.
Pele, the legendary Brazilian footballer, is considered the football god of all time. No player has won more world cups (3) than him.
Messi is the most popular candidate thanks to his performances at the FIFA World Cup 2022. The Argentine attacker is frequently recognised as the best player in football history. Like his rival Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo is regarded by many as the best football player to ever play the game.
Messi's 496th league goal in Europe breaks Ronaldo's record and secures 11th Ligue 1 title amid sour mood at the club.
Messi holds the record for most goals in La Liga (474), the Supercopa de España (14), the UEFA Super Cup (3) and is the player with the most official recorded assists in football history (357). He is also the only player to have 300 club career assists to his name.
Teamwork. While strong cases can be made for the other players in the running for the G.O.A.T. title, one factor gives Messi the edge above the rest – teamwork. The Argentinian playmaker has forged several successful link-ups with his teammates during his career including Ronaldinho, Andres Iniesta and Xavi.
Lionel Messi, the FIFA World Cup winner, has been named The Best FIFA Men's Player. Messi was chosen ahead of Kylian Mbappe, the France forward and World Cup finalist.
The player with the most Ballon d'Or awards all-time is Lionel Messi who has won it seven times.
The Argentine has scored more World Cup goals - 13 - than his two rivals, though he's played more games. Pele hit 12 goals at the World Cup and Ronaldo has notched eight times. Pele's ratio, though, sees him come out on top again; 0.86 compared to Messi on 0.5 and Ronaldo on 0.36.
Lionel Messi
Whether playing for the Argentina national football team or Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), Messi produces brilliance in every match.
Most Best FIFA Men's Player awards
Messi lays claim to both records, having won the Ballon d'Or seven times and the Best FIFA Men's Player award (formerly the FIFA World Player of the Year) six times. Ronaldo has won each award five times.
Lionel Messi is the all time record winner of the award, having won it six times overall. He also holds the record for most goals and most points in a single season (50 and 100 respectively, in 2011–12). Cristiano Ronaldo is second on the all time list, having won four Golden Shoes, as well as two consecutively.
According to the Spanish publication, Ronaldinho stated that Messi is the greatest player the sport has to offer: "He is the best in the world, and there's nothing more to be said."
Lionel Messi breaks Cristiano Ronaldo's record for most goals scored in Europe's top five leagues.
Across both domestic and international ties, the duo have met each other 36 times – the first of which came in the Champions League while Ronaldo was still a Manchester United player in his first stint there back in 2008.
Ronaldo has netted 706 club goals and provided 225 assists in 954 appearances so far. Lionel Messi, on the other hand, spent most of his professional career at Barcelona before moving to Paris Saint-Germain. During his career, Messi has scored 704 club goals in just 860 matches. He has also recorded 333 assists.