Pelé: King of the World Cup Pelé managed to raise three World Cup trophies with Brazil, finishing with victories in Sweden 1958, Chile 1962 and Mexico 1970. Maradona won one World Cup throughout his career, although behind him there is a memorable performance in Mexico 1986.
Just who is the greatest? Pele, who died on Thursday, and the two Argentines all won the sport's greatest prize -- the World Cup -- and were undoubtedly the kings of their eras. -- Pele played in four World Cups, winning three times, a record not yet beaten and giving him one more than Maradona and Messi combined.
For Brazilians, Pele will always be the player of the three World Cups, the one with more than 1,000 goals, their O'Rei''. However, for the Argentines, Maradona will be forever remembered as the player who led them to glory in Mexico 86, as the one who took the Albiceleste on his back and made them champions.
Lionel Messi vs Pele's career goals and assists
Although their tallies in terms of appearances and goals are almost at par, Messi overtook Pele to become the leading goal scorer for the South American continent when he scored a hat-trick against Bolivia in the 2021 World Cup qualifiers.
Pele and Maradona by the numbers
Pele and Maradona both had the same number of titles throughout their careers, with 14 trophies won between their clubs and national team's.
Winner — Pele
His three-time World Cup-winning feat, from four World Cup appearances, is unlikely to be matched. Pele scored a Guinness World Record 1279 goals in 1363 games and also collected the following personal records along the way: Youngest winner of a World Cup. Youngest scorer in World Cup — age of 17!
Pele won the World Cup three times, in 1958, 1962 and 1970, a football milestone no other player has yet achieved. In 2000, Fifa named Pele as the player of the century along with Argentina's Diego Maradona, who died in 2020 at 60.
I think Pele was more successful in the International circuit. He scored a multitude of goals and won the World Cup three times. Maradona, on the other hand, had a better club career, which saw him play at Barcelona and Napoli. Pele was more confined to Brazil and the Brazilian League.
As mentioned, Pele's official goal record, recognised by FIFA and the Guinness Book of World Records is 1281 goals.
According to FIFA, they currently look like this: Pele – 77 goals. Neymar – 77 goals* Ronaldo – 62 goals.
Messi has 13 World Cup goals compared to Maradona's eight. In terms of overall goals, Maradona has 34 goals for his country, while Messi has scored 97 goals.
Is Maradona the greatest player of all time? There is no argument against Diego Maradona being considered the greatest player of all time. As previously mentioned, his dribbling ability was one which many had not seen before and was something which terrified the opposition.
This means that once the club and the international stages come together and the calculators are whipped out, across their careers, Ronaldo has scored more than Messi and Pele. He has notched 819 times, with Pele sat on 786 and Messi bagging on 793 occasions.
Pele played in four World Cups, winning three times, a record not yet beaten and giving him one more than Maradona and Messi combined. He was just 17 in 1958 when he was world champion in Sweden, scoring six goals, two in the final.
Even before their time, many regarded Pele as the ultimate football king. But in Maradona's eyes, none of these men matched up to the bar set by Alfredo Di Stéfano. In a 2019 interview with TYC Sports as per AS, the Argentinian revealed why he held his countryman in such high regard.
Everything that we've gone over so far points us in this direction – Cristiano Ronaldo is the greatest footballer from these three, and perhaps in the history of the game. Being a sensation from an early age, Ronaldo has shown us that he's able to adapt to different managers, clubs, and most importantly – leagues.
Most hat-tricks: This is an unbelievable feat. During his career, Pele scored a whopping 92 hat-tricks, most by any. Youngest to appear, score, and win a FIFA WC final: At 17 years and 249 days, Pele appeared in his first-ever FIFA WC final in 1958 during Brazil versus Sweden tie.
Pele | Brazil
Brazilian legend Pele held the title of being the greatest football player of all time and in the opinion of several people, especially those fans from the older generation, he is still the king.
That player is Lionel Messi. Messi is not just talented but has converted his talent into greatness. Neymar is a good player but Messi is a great one. Neymar plays great football but Messi is a great footballer.
The rivalry was born from the eternal competition between Brazil and Argentina, but also due "to Maradona and his desire to surpass Pelé." Which is curious when you know that the two players never crossed paths on field: Pelé retired right as Maradona was getting started.
Lionel Messi beats Kylian Mbappe, Karim Benzema to Best FIFA Men's Player award. Lionel Messi was named Best FIFA Men's Player at a ceremony in Paris on Monday, beating Paris Saint-Germain teammate Kylian Mbappe and Real Madrid's Karim Benzema.
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Pele was regarded as one of the greatest players of all time and labelled "the greatest" by Fifa. He was part of the Brazilian national teams that won three World Cup trophies in (1958, 1962, and 1970).
Who is the greatest footballer of all? Football fans have always been divided on this issue with a large number favouring the original G.O.A.T. while there is an equal number who bestow the honour on Diego Maradona, the Argentine legend that won the World Cup in 1986, scoring mesmerising goals in the process.
Yes, Pelé was the greatest ever. As he was ailing in a Sao Paolo hospital a month ago while the big show that he'd helped define grabbed the world's attention in Qatar, Pelé was described variously in some media outlets as a Brazilian legend. A few “generously” called him one of the greatest footballers in history.