Cristiano Ronaldo Retires, Leaving Two Legendary Records That Might Never Fall—Discover What They Are!

Cristiano Ronaldo has closed a 23-year international career that took him from a teenager replacing Luis Figo in a friendly to the greatest figure in Portugal’s history. His retirement, announced on Thursday, leaves behind a legacy of titles and unforgettable moments, but also two records that look more out of reach than ever, in men’s international soccer worldwide. The question now is whether anyone can ever get close.

The first is the goals record, in which the striker is the all-time top scorer for a national team. Ronaldo finished with 146 for Portugal, a total built over more than two decades that he kept growing until his final World Cup, where he scored his last international goal from the penalty spot against Croatia in the round of 32. The record has been his since 2021, when two goals against the Republic of Ireland took him to 111 and past Iran’s Ali Daei, who held it with 109.

The gap he leaves is enormous. Lionel Messi, the closest player on the list, ended his Argentina career with 126 goals, 20 fewer than Ronaldo, and since he retired in October after his farewell match against Benin, that total will not grow. Daei is long retired, and so is India’s Sunil Chhetri, who sits fourth on the list with 95 goals.

That leaves the active players with a mountain to climb. Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku, 33, has 94 goals and Poland’s Robert Lewandowski, 38, has 92, which puts both more than 50 goals short of Ronaldo. Given their ages, it is hard to imagine either of them catching up, and no one else is close enough to threaten the record.