All-Time Top Scorers
The leading goalscorers in the history of men's football, by total official career goals and by goals for their national team.
Most career goals(club & country)
- 1
Cristiano RonaldoActivePortugal973Goals - 2
Lionel MessiActiveArgentina910Goals - 3
PeléBrazil762Goals - 4
RomárioBrazil756Goals - 5
Ferenc PuskásHungary725Goals - 6
Josef BicanAustria722Goals - 7
Robert LewandowskiActivePoland697Goals - 8
Jimmy JonesNorthern Ireland639Goals - 9
Gerd MüllerWest Germany634Goals - 10
Joe BambrickNorthern Ireland626Goals
Source: IFFHS via Wikipedia, total official goals across all professional levels (club and country), as of 24 May 2026. Figures for active players continue to rise. Goal tallies for some historical players are disputed between sources.
Most international goals(national team)
- 1Cristiano RonaldoPortugal143Goals
- 2Lionel MessiArgentina116Goals
- 3
Ali DaeiIran108Goals - 4
Sunil ChhetriIndia95Goals - 5
Romelu LukakuBelgium89Goals - 5
Mokhtar DahariMalaysia89Goals - 5Robert LewandowskiPoland89Goals
- 8
Ali MabkhoutUnited Arab Emirates85Goals - 9Ferenc PuskásHungary84Goals
- 10
Godfrey ChitaluZambia79Goals
Source: Wikipedia, men's footballers with the most international goals, figures current as of 2026. Ronaldo passed Ali Daei's long-standing record of 109 in 2021; Daei still ranks third all-time.
The race to be football's greatest goalscorer
For most of football history the all-time scoring record belonged to legends of the past such as Pelé, Romário and Ferenc Puskás. That changed in the modern era: Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have rewritten the record books, each pushing well beyond 900 official career goals, a tally no player had ever approached before.
Ronaldo leads the way with 973 goals across spells at Sporting CP, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Juventus and Al-Nassr, plus a record haul for Portugal. Messi sits second on 910, having scored for Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Inter Miami and Argentina. Among players who have retired, Pelé remains the benchmark on 762 goals.
Because this ranking counts official goals at every professional level rather than only top divisions, a few prolific lower-league marksmen appear alongside the household names, most notably the Northern Irish forwards Jimmy Jones and Joe Bambrick, who piled up goals in the Irish League.
International goals tell a different story. Here Iran's Ali Daei is a giant: his 108 goals for the national team made him the first man to pass 100 international goals and kept him at the top of the all-time list for 16 years, until Cristiano Ronaldo overtook him in 2021. Ronaldo (143) and Messi (116) now lead the way, but Daei remains third, still the most prolific international scorer outside Europe and South America.
Frequently asked questions
Who is the all-time top scorer in football?+
Cristiano Ronaldo is the all-time leading goalscorer in men's football with 973 official career goals as of May 2026, ahead of Lionel Messi. Ronaldo has scored for Sporting CP, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Juventus, Al-Nassr and the Portugal national team.
How many career goals has Lionel Messi scored?+
Lionel Messi has scored 910 official career goals, second on the all-time list behind Cristiano Ronaldo. The tally combines his goals for Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Inter Miami and the Argentina national team.
Who is the top active goalscorer in football?+
Cristiano Ronaldo is the top active goalscorer with 973 official career goals, ahead of fellow active players Lionel Messi (910) and Robert Lewandowski (697). The rest of the all-time top 10 are retired legends such as Pelé, Romário and Ferenc Puskás.
Will Lionel Messi catch Cristiano Ronaldo's goal record?+
As of May 2026 Messi trails Ronaldo by 63 career goals, 910 to 973. Both are still playing, so the gap can still change, but Ronaldo also keeps adding to his total for Al-Nassr and Portugal, making the all-time record difficult to overtake.
Who is the highest-scoring retired footballer?+
Pelé is the highest-scoring retired player with 762 official goals, third on the all-time career list, just ahead of fellow Brazilian Romário on 756.
Who has scored the most international goals?+
Cristiano Ronaldo has scored the most international goals in men's football with 143 for Portugal, ahead of Lionel Messi (116 for Argentina) and Ali Daei (108 for Iran). Daei held the record for 16 years until Ronaldo overtook him in 2021.
Why isn't Ali Daei in the all-time top scorers list?+
Ali Daei's fame comes from international goals, not total career goals. He scored 108 goals for Iran, third-most in history, and was the men's international record holder for 16 years. His combined club-and-country total is below the 500-goal mark of the career list, but he ranks third on the international chart on this page.
Why are Jimmy Jones and Joe Bambrick in the top 10?+
This ranking counts official goals across every professional level, not just top divisions. Northern Irish forwards Jimmy Jones (639) and Joe Bambrick (626) scored prolifically in the Irish League, which lifts them into the all-time top 10.
Are these official goals only?+
Yes. The figures count total official career goals for club and country, as compiled by the IFFHS. Tallies for some historical players are disputed between sources, and totals for active players continue to rise.