Lionel Messi’s decision to end his Argentina career has closed one chapter of football’s greatest individual rivalries and protected several of Cristiano Ronaldo’s international records from further pursuit.
The 41-year-old Ronaldo began playing for Portugal in 2003, while Messi made his Argentina debut in 2005. For more than two decades, their contest for individual awards, records and honours with club and country captivated supporters around the world.
Messi played his final match for Argentina on Wednesday, bringing an outstanding international career to an end. Ronaldo, meanwhile, has not officially retired and remains keen to continue representing Portugal, despite his disagreement with manager Jorge Jesus.
Messi leaves behind a historic legacy, led by Argentina’s 2022 World Cup triumph in Qatar, as well as a collection of other titles and records that placed him above many of his country’s greatest players. Ronaldo’s international honours include winning Euro 2016, alongside a series of records that are now difficult to challenge.
Ronaldo’s international records protected
The most significant achievement Messi cannot now match is winning the World Cup. The next edition will be held in 2030, when Ronaldo would be about 45 years old, making his participation practically impossible.
Messi’s retirement has also secured five major records held by Ronaldo, which could have come under threat had the Argentina forward continued playing for several more years.
Ronaldo remains the most-capped player in international football history, with 234 appearances for Portugal. That total could still increase if he returns to the national team. Messi’s career ended with 208 international matches, after his final appearance against Benin on Wednesday.
Ronaldo is also the leading international goalscorer, with 146 goals. Messi scored in his last match against Benin to reach 126, meaning he had represented a genuine challenge to Ronaldo’s record before ending his international career.
Ronaldo also has the superior international scoring rate, finding the net approximately once every 127 minutes, compared with once every 136 minutes for Messi.
Another record belongs to Ronaldo for scoring against the highest number of different national teams. Messi’s penalty against Benin took his total to 46 opponents, while Ronaldo has scored against 49 different countries. Messi can no longer surpass that figure.
Ronaldo also became the first player in football history to score at six different World Cups. He achieved the feat at the 2026 tournament, scoring against Uzbekistan in the group stage, having found the net at every World Cup in which he had appeared.
Messi played at six World Cups but scored in only five, failing to score at the 2010 tournament in South Africa. He finished with 21 goals in 34 World Cup matches, making him the second-highest scorer in the competition’s history behind Kylian Mbappe. Ronaldo scored 11 goals in 27 matches.
The Portugal captain is also the all-time leading scorer in World Cup qualifying, with 41 goals in 52 games. Guatemala’s former striker Carlos Ruiz is second with 39 goals in 47 matches, while Messi is third on 36 goals in 72 appearances, ahead of Robert Lewandowski, who has 35 in 46.
