Top Footballers: Records of the Best in the World

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Best Footballers In The World With Massive Records

Almost every single one of us has grown up playing football, in the field or on our computers, and we have loved it a lot. Though, a lot of us, just play it for fun without actually diving into the world of Football.

In fact, it is one of the only sports in the world whose players get international recognition even in places where no one watches football.

A great example of this is the massive following and popularity of Christiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. However, very few actually know about some of the best footballers in the world, of course in addition to these two.

It would still be an understatement to suggest that ranking the best football players of all time is the ultimate subjective endeavor in the history of subjective endeavors.

To compare a 21st-century athlete to someone from the early 20th century is a virtually impossible task, in no small part down to the fact that very few people have lived.

1. Luka Modric

Peak: 2014-18

Major Achievements: 2018 Ballon d'Or, 2018 UEFA Men's Best Player of the Year, 2018 the Best FIFA Men's Player, FIFA World Cup Golden Ball 2018, four UEFA Champions Leagues.

We start off with a man who did the impossible in 2018: in the Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo era, he won the Ballon d'Or.

2. John Charles

Peak: 1957-60

Major Achievements: Third place Ballon d'Or, 1956-57 Serie A top scorer, three Scudetti & two Coppa Italia.

3. Hugo Sanchez

Peak: 1986-90

Major Achievements: 1990 European Golden Shoe, five-time Pichichi winner, five La Liga titles, one Copa del Rey.

4. Jairzinho

Peak: 1970

Major Achievements: 1970 World Cup, only player to score in every game of a World Cup, 'Best Body on the Planet' FIFA award (not sure what this is but it sounds great).

Jairzinho is the only player in FIFA World Cup history to score in every single game of the tournament.

He did so while guiding the greatest football team of all time to a FIFA World Cup triumph.

5. Omar Sivori

Peak: 1958-61

Major Achievements: 1961 Ballon d'Or, 1959/60 Capocannoniere, three Scudetti, two Coppa Italia titles.

6. Paolo Rossi

Peak: 1982

Major Achievements: 1982 Ballon d'Or, 1982 World Cup, FIFA World Cup Golden Ball 2018, 1977-78 Capocannoniere, two Scudetti, one Coppa Italia title, and one European Cup.

7. Paul Breitner

Peak: 1974-81

Major Achievements: 1981 Ballon d'Or runner-up, 1974 World Cup, 1972 UEFA European Championships, FIFA World Cup All-Time Team, five Bundesliga titles, two DFB-Pokal titles, and one European Cup.

8. George Weah

Peak: 1993-96

Major Achievements: 1995 Ballon d'Or, three-time African Footballer of the Year, two Scudetti, one Ligue 1 title, two Coupe de France, one FA Cup.

9. Kaka

Peak: 2005-09

Major Achievements: 2007 Ballon d'Or, 2007 FIFA World Player of the Year, two-time Serie A Footballer of the Year, two-time Time 100 list member, 2002 FIFA World Cup, one Scudetti, one UEFA Champions League, one La Liga, one Copa del Rey.

At his best, Kaka was unstoppable. With a rare combination of physical prowess and unbelievable technical ability, the former Brazil international was the most complete attacking midfielder of the 2000s.

10. Lev Yashin

Peak: 1956-64

Major Achievements: 1963 Ballon d'Or, Olympic gold medal, 1960 UEFA European Football Championship, FIFA World Cup All-Time Team, five Soviet Top League titles, Order of Lenin.

Lev Yashin is one of the most important footballers of all time, as he basically invented goalkeeping.

11. Gunnar Nordahl

Peak: 1950-55

Major Achievements: Olympic gold medal, five-time Capocannoniere, two Scudetti.

There's one thing that defines Gunnar Nordahl's career: goals.

The Swedish forward scored so many goals between 1950 and 1955 that he won the Capocannoniere in four of these seasons, and became AC Milan's all-time record goalscorer.

12. Kevin Keegan

Peak: 1977-79

Major Achievements: 1978 & 1979 Ballon d'Or, 1981/82 PFA Players' Player of the Year, three Football League First Division titles, one FA Cup, one European Cup, two UEFA Cup titles, and one Bundesliga.

13. Hristo Stoichkov

Peak: 1990-94

Major Achievements: 1994 Ballon d'Or, 1990 European Golden Shoe, five-time Bulgarian Footballer of the Year, one UEFA Champions League, five La Liga titles, and one Copa del Rey.

14. Gianluigi Buffon

Peak: 2002-06

Major Achievements: 2006 Ballon d'Or runner-up, 2006 FIFA World Cup, 12-time Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year, 2002-03 UEFA Club Footballer of the Year, two-time Pallone Azzurro, 2016-17 Serie A Footballer of the Year, 11 Scudetti, five Coppa Italia titles, one UEFA Cup.

15. Xavi Hernandez

Peak: 2008-12

Major Achievements: 2010 FIFA World Cup, 2008 & 2012 UEFA European Championship, 2008 UEFA European Championship Player of the Tournament, 2005 La Liga Spanish Player of the Year, four UEFA Champions Leagues, eight La Liga titles, three Copa del Rey.

16. Andres Iniesta

Peak: 2008-12

Major Achievements: 2010 FIFA World Cup, 2008 & 2012 UEFA European Championships, four UEFA Champions Leagues, nine La Liga titles, six Copa del Rey, 2012 UEFA Men's Player of the Year Award.

17. Ronaldinho

Peak: 2004-06

Major Achievements: 2005 Ballon d'Or, 2004 & 2005 FIFA World Player of the Year, 2005/06 UEFA Club Footballer of the Year, 2004 & 2005 FIFPro World Player of the Year, one UEFA Champions League, two La Liga titles, one Scudetto.

Between 2004 and 2006, the world bore witness to something truly special: a footballer who played the beautiful game with genuine joy.

The flicks, the tricks, the gold boots, the smile, the faked Nike ad, Ronaldinho was a walking advertisement for everything good about football.

18. Romario

Peak: 1990-94

Major Achievements: 1994 FIFA World Player of the Year, 1994 FIFA World Cup, 1994 FIFA World Cup Golden Ball, 1994 World Cup All-Star Team, 1989 & 1997 Copa America, one La Liga, three time Eredivisie, 1993-94 Pichichi winner.

19. Zico

Peak: 1979-82

Major Achievements: Five-time Bola de Prata winner, three-time South American Footballer of the Year, top scorer in Flamengo's history, 1981 Copa Libertadores Best Player, 1981 Copa Libertadores, 1981 Intercontinental Cup, three Campeonato Brasilerio Serie A titles.

20. Cristiano Ronaldo

Peak: 2012-16

Major Achievements: 2008, 2013, 2014, 2016 & 2017 Ballon d'Or, 2008, 2016 & 2017 FIFA World Player of the Year, 2014, 2016 & 2017 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award, four-time European Golden Shoe winner, two-time PFA Players' Player of the Year, UEFA Champions League all-time top goalscorer, Real Madrid's all-time top goalscorer, five UEFA Champions Leagues, two La Liga titles, three Premier League titles, one Scudetto, two Copa del Rey, one FA Cup, one UEFA European Championship.

21. Paolo Maldini

Peak: 1994-2003

Major Achievements: Most Serie A appearances of all time, most AC Milan appearances of all time, five European Cups, seven Scudetti, one Coppa Italia, two Intercontinental Cup, 1994 FIFA World Cup runner-up, 2000 UEFA European Football Championship runner-up.

22. Michel Platini

Peak: 1982-85

Major Achievements: 1983, 1984, 1985 Ballon d'Or, French Player of the Century, two-time French Player of the Year, three-time Capocannoniere, 1984 UEFA European Championship Player of the Tournament, 1984 UEFA European Championship, one European Cup, two Scudetti, one Ligue 1 title, one Coppa Italia, one Intercontinental Cup.

23. Ronaldo

Peak: 1995-98

Major Achievements: 1997 & 2002 Ballon d'Or, 1996, 1997 & 2002 FIFA World Player of the Year, 1998 FIFA World Cup Golden Ball, 2002 FIFA World Cup Golden Shoe, 1996/97 European Golden Shoe, 1994 & 2002 FIFA World Cup, 1997 & 1999 Copa America, two-time Pichichi winner, 1998 Serie A Footballer of the Year, two La Liga titles, one Copa del Rey, one KNVB Cup, one UEFA Cup, one Intercontinental Cup.

24. Zinedine Zidane

Peak: 1997-2002

Major Achievements: 1998 Ballon d'Or, 1998, 2000 & 2003 FIFA World Player of the Year, 2002 UEFA Club Footballer of the Year, 2000/01 Serie A Footballer of the Year, UEFA Champions League Best Player of the Past 20 Years, L'Equipe Best French Player of All Time, 2006 FIFA World Cup Golden Ball, only player to be named Player of the Year in three of the top five leagues, most goals in FIFA World Cup finals, 1998 FIFA World Cup, 2000 UEFA European Championships, one Champions League, two Scudetti, one La Liga title, one Intercontinental Cup.

25. Lionel Messi

Peak: 2009-12

Major Achievements: 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 & 2015 Ballon d'Or, 2009 FIFA World Player of the Year, Barcelona all-time top goalscorer, La Liga all-time top goalscorer, six-time Pichichi winner, Argentina's all-time top goalscorer, most goals scored in a calendar year, 2011 & 2015 UEFA Men's Player of the Year, seven-time La Liga Player of the Year, 2014 FIFA World Cup Golden Ball, 2005 Young European Footballer of the Year, five-time European Golden Shoe winner, four Champions Leagues, nine La Liga titles, six Copa del Rey.

26. Pele

Peak: 1958-64

Major Achievements: Most career goals (of any footballer ever, like ever), FIFA Player of the Century, France Football's greatest FIFA World Cup player, TIME 100 Most Important People of the 20th Century list, Brazil's all-time leading goalscorer, Santos' all-time leading goalscorer, youngest FIFA World Cup winner, most assists in FIFA World Cup history, 1958, 1962 & 1970 FIFA World Cup, top goalscorer in FIFA World Cup finals, two Copa Libertadores titles, six Campeonato Brasilerio Serie A titles, two Intercontinental Cups, 1970 FIFA World Cup Golden Ball, 1958 FIFA World Cup Best Young Player, 1970 Bola de Prata.

27. Diego Maradona

Peak: 1985-90

Major Achievements: 90min's Greatest Footballer of All Time, Corriere dello Sport's Best Athlete in History, 1986 FIFA World Cup, 1986 FIFA World Cup Golden Ball, 1985 Serie A Footballer of the Year, FIFA World Cup All-Time Team, FIFA Goal of the Century, Argentine Sports Writers' Sportsman of the Century, two-time South American Footballer of the Year, four-time Argentine Football Writers' Footballer of the Year, two Scudetti, one Coppa Italia, one Copa del Rey, one UEFA Cup.

FAQ

1. Who is the greatest player of all time in football?

Pele, the legendary Brazilian footballer, is generally deemed the best football player in the world of all time.

2. Who is the king of football now?

Lionel Messi is considered the king of football after his fabulous previous season including his Copa America trophy in 2021.

3. Who is better Messi or Ronaldo?

The longest rivalry between the two greatest players of this era, Lionel Messi has been considered as the best to grace the game of football. While Ronaldo currently has more goals overall than Messi, the latter holds an edge over the former with 2 extra Ballon d’Or.