Competitive ranking and all-game ranking: The players with the most international goals of all time

Goals, goals, goals!

International may be seen by some as an intrusive barrier to domestic football throughout the season, but for many of the sport’s biggest players it is another opportunity to showcase their talents and continue in their efforts to win silverware and fame for their country. And this international break’s fixtures have proven to be exactly that, with some of the biggest stars in the world scoring goals and breaking records.

Players with the most international goals in competitive games

Cristiano Ronaldo confirmed his spot as the player with the most international goals from competitive games in the history of the sport some time ago, but that doesn’t mean the forward has any intention of slowing down. Although Scotland held Portugal to a 0-0 draw in their most recent Nations League clash, a goal in his nation’s 3-1 win over Poland now means that the forward has a remarkable 111 goals in 162 competitive games for his country. Which also means that Ronaldo now has an impressive 35 goals more than second-placed Ali Daei of Iran and, crucially, 50 more than Lionel Messi, who sits fourth on the list.

Players with the most goals in all international games

While competitive games are the gold standard for international football, that doesn’t stop most players from racking up big goal tallies in friendly matches. And, come the end of their careers, some of the most celebrated goalscorers in the history of the sport have demanded that their accomplishments in non-competitive games be ranked alongside what they did in qualifiers or international tournaments. And when we look at the current ranking of players with the most goals in all international games, it’s certainly a who’s who of the greatest players to have ever played the game.

To no great surprise, Ronaldo is once again top of the list with 133 goals in 216 caps for Portugal, with Messi in second place with 112 goals in 189 games for Argentina. Daei is third with 108 goals for his country, but is then followed by Indian star Sunil Chhetri (94 goals) and Malaysia talisman Mokhtar Dahari (89 goals) to round up the top five. However, the players to keep an eye on in the coming years will be Romelu Lukaku (85 goals for Belgium) and Robert Lewandowski (84 goals for Poland), who will undoubtedly have their ambitions set on making up ground on both Messi and Ronaldo once the pair do eventually hang up their boots.