Lionel Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo: Will World Cup win end GOAT debate once and for all?

Lionel Messi's pursuit of a 2nd FIFA World Cup rubric has reignited football's longest-running debate.

Argentina's triumph implicit England has enactment them done to Sunday's last against Spain, and with it comes the acquainted question of whether different trophy would yet settee the Greatest Of All Times (GOAT) statement betwixt Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Two decades of pushing each other

For adjacent to 2 decades, Messi and Ronaldo person defined an epoch of shot dissimilar immoderate earlier it.

Between them they person collected 13 Ballon d'Or awards, a combined haul of Champions League and home league titles, and scoring records that neither had immoderate existent rival for extracurricular each other.

The World Cup has agelong stood retired arsenic 1 of the fewer distinctions separating them.

Messi ended his hold by captaining Argentina to the 2022 rubric successful Qatar, adding the 1 grant missing from his career.

Ronaldo won the UEFA European Championship successful 2016 and the UEFA Nations League with Portugal, but a World Cup ne'er came his way.

That spread is present permanent: Portugal mislaid 1-0 to Spain successful the circular of 16 astatine this tournament, and Ronaldo has confirmed it was his past World Cup.

Argentina needed a late rally to bushed England successful the semi-final.

Anthony Gordon enactment England up 10 minutes into the 2nd fractional successful beforehand of 68,239 fans successful Atlanta.

Messi supplied the walk for Enzo Fernandez's equaliser successful the 85th minute, past acceptable up Lautaro Martinez for a stoppage-time victor to nonstop Argentina through.

It was the latest section successful a tourney successful which Argentina has repeatedly recovered goals late, and it extended England's hold for a archetypal World Cup last since 1966.

What a 2nd rubric would mean for Messi

A triumph implicit Spain would marque Argentina the archetypal broadside to support the World Cup since Brazil successful 1962, it would besides marque Messi lone the 2nd player, aft Brazil's Cafu, to look successful 3 World Cup finals.

Supporters reason that a 2nd title, combined with sustained peaks astatine Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Miami, would permission small country near successful the debate.

Messi already holds a grounds 8 Ballon d'Or awards, on with a Copa America rubric successful 2021 and a Finalissima triumph successful 2022, some with Argentina.

The lawsuit that inactive favours Ronaldo

Ronaldo's supporters constituent to a assemblage of enactment built crossed 5 clubs: Sporting CP, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Juventus and Al Nassr.

He finishes his Portugal vocation with 146 planetary goals, the astir scored by immoderate subordinate successful the men's game.

He is besides Portugal's all-time starring World Cup scorer, with 11 goals aft breaking Eusebio's grounds of nine, a people that had stood since 1966.

Ronaldo became the archetypal subordinate successful men's shot past to people successful six antithetic World Cups, doing truthful against Uzbekistan successful this tournament's radical stage.

For his backers, that measurement and 2 decades of consistency astatine the apical level number for much than a azygous trophy either way.

Messi vs Ronaldo: A statement that resists a last answer

The rivalry has ever been astir much than trophies and statistics.

Messi is remembered for his vision, dribbling and instinct for the decisive pass, portion Ronaldo is remembered arsenic 1 of the astir objective finishers the athletics has produced.

There is nary governing assemblage ranking that settles the question, since Ballon d'Or voting, trophy counts and extremity records each reward antithetic things.

Even with Messi 1 triumph distant from a 2nd World Cup, the statement is apt to tally connected among fans agelong aft Sunday's last whistle successful New Jersey, due to the fact that greatness is measured against antithetic criteria depending connected who is doing the measuring.

Messi, 39, is Argentina's skipper and already has a World Cup, a Copa America, a Finalissima and a grounds 8 Ballon d'Or awards to his name.

Ronaldo, 41, closes retired his planetary vocation arsenic men's football's all-time starring scorer, with trophy-winning spells astatine Sporting CP, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Juventus and Al Nassr, and Euro and Nations League titles with Portugal.

Whatever the effect connected Sunday, some players permission legacies that person shaped modern shot and inspired a procreation of supporters.

Vote successful the Sports Mole World Cup 2026 Readers’ Awards!

Cast your votes for the 2026 World Cup awards; from subordinate of the tourney and breakout star, to champion attacker and biggest disappointment.

Voting volition beryllium unfastened until 11pm UK clip connected Monday, July 20, and the winners announced connected Tuesday, July 21!