Messi has won the European Golden Shoe a record six times, two more than Ronaldo, and is barely ahead of his adversary overall, but the fact that both have been named to the FIFPro World XI 13 times shows how tight the rivalry has been. The last time either player had not made the team was in 2007 when Ronaldo missed out due to injury.
They are close friends who enjoy a drink together after games and share the same agent, Jorge Mendes, but they also have some fierce arguments about which is better, Messi or Ronaldo. The topic has been causing debate for years between fans of both players, with many arguing over which is better: Messi's incredible career or Ronaldo's successful one?
In 2012, they both scored almost exactly the same number of goals (48). But while Ronaldo went on to win several awards that year including the Ballon d'Or, Messi stayed home to win all of these: Euro 2012 Golden Boot, FIFA World Player of the Year, UEFA Champions League/European Football Championship Club World Cup.
It's safe to say that both players are world class and it's hard to pick one over the other. If you asked most people they would probably choose Ronaldo because he has more trophies but that's only because he has more opportunities to score. If Messi played in England or Portugal he would definitely win lots of titles too.
Messi has two more Golden Shoes than Cristiano Ronaldo, who has won the trophy four times, most recently in 2014-15. Messi has had an injury-plagued start to the 2019–20 season...
He currently has 51 goals from 91 appearances for Argentina and Barcelona.
The "Golden Shoe" is an award given out by La Liga every year to the player who scores the most goals during the season. The name comes from the fact that each shoe of the player receiving the award is decorated with a golden nail for good luck. The prize was created in 1956 by newspaper Diario de Valencia to help their sales by giving away prizes. Since then it has become a tradition for the player who wins the award to break a glass bottle on the pitch to show that he is not afraid of death. The goal scorers don't always win the award, but since its inception only five players have been nominated more than once. Lionel Messis father played in three of those elections for his son to break Gerd Müller's record of five nominations.
Lionel Messis first nomination came in 1983 when he was just 21 years old and playing for Argentinos Juniors. He went on to win the award the following year when he scored 60 goals in all competitions for Boca Juniors.
Their goal-scoring heroics have earned Messi three European Golden Shoe trophies and Ronaldo four, while both men have won the Uefa Best Player award three times.
They are also joint winners of the Balón d'Or award, given to the world's best player over a calendar year. In 2009/10 they were jointly top of the scoring charts with 11 goals each.
Messi has also been named on the FIFA World Player of the Year award podium twice, in 2015/16 and again this season. He is now the all-time leading scorer in Champions League history, with 91 goals.
Ronaldo scored his 100th career UEFA club competition goal earlier this month against NK Maribor at the age of 36 years and 279 days. He is only the second player after Argentina's Diego Maradona to score in five consecutive Champions League matches (eight overall).
Ronaldo is also the most expensive player in football history having joined Paris Saint-Germain for a fee reported to be $300m. He has since gone on to make more than $100m in salary alone with bonuses at Paris Saint-Germain.
Cristiano Ronaldo has five golden boots in the league, while Lewandone has two. 6. How many golden boots does Messi have in La Liga? 7. What is the record for most goals scored by a player in the UEFA Champions League? 8. Which English club has won the most European cups? 9. Who is the current champion of Europe? 10. Which country are they from? 11. How many times has Italy won the European Cup/Champions League? 12. Name the last team to defeat Italy.
Italy's latest victory came on June 14, 2017 when they beat Spain's soccer team 2-1 at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza in Milan to win their sixth European Championship. Italy first entered the European Championship in 1960 and has since then never been eliminated early from the competition.
They are one of only three countries to have ever won the trophy more than once (the other two being Germany and Portugal). Italy won it all again in 2010. As for Ronaldo, he has five golden boots overall including one in the International Soccer League and one with Portuguese club Porto. He also has two with Spanish club Real Madrid.
Ronaldo first made his name with Portugal's Sporting Lisbon before moving to Spanish club Madrid in 2003.
With a total of 11 Ballon d'Or/FIB Ballon d'Or honors (six for Messi and five for Ronaldo), both are widely recognized not just as the finest players of their age, but also as two of the greatest of all time by many in the sport, including players, journalists, and fans. They are both multiple-time winners of the Ballon d'Or.
Awarded annually by France's leading sports newspaper L'Equipe since 1956, the Ballon d'Or is considered the world championship of football (soccer). The award is given to the best player in Europe based on voting from other professional footballers. It is currently sponsored by French manufacturer Nike.
The first FIFA World Player of the Year Award was presented to Pele at the 1957 FIFA World Cup final in Sweden. He won the award again the following year. Alfredo Di Stéfano became the first player to win the award three times when he did so in 1958, 1959, and 1960. Michel Platini is the only man to have won the award four times, doing so in 1984, 1985, 1986, and 1987.
Messi and Ronaldo have been involved in almost every goal scored during their careers. However, only Di Stefano has won the award while still active in his career. No player has won it more than once while still playing professionally.
Leo Messi now has 53 hat-tricks, while Cristiano Ronaldo has 55. Despite the fact that Ronaldo has played two more seasons, the gap between them is modest. Another fascinating fact is that more than half of Cristiano Ronaldo's hat-tricks include one or more penalty goals. There are only three players who have scored more penalties than him: Lionel Messi (58), Robert Lewandowski (28), and Harry Kane (27).
The record for most hat tricks in a single season is held by Mario Jardine with six during the 1946/47 season. The record for most all-time consecutive hat tricks is held by Diego Maradona with ten from 1986 to 1995.
Ronaldo and Messi have been involved in several controversies throughout their careers. Some people believe that Cristiano Ronaldo is a dirty player, but others think he is just smart enough to avoid getting sent off. When it comes to Leo Messi, some people think he is overrated, but most people agree that he is one of the best footballers in history.
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