In the game of association football/soccer, arguably the most celebrated players are forwards/strikers. It is so because matches are won by the amount of goals scored and forwards/strikers have a knack for finding the back of the net. Most players either find success at a club or at the international level. Only a select few have distinguished themselves by exceling on both stages and even fewer have made their mark on the latter.
Who is the highest international goal scorer? Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo is the highest international goal scorer with 115 goals. Ronaldo’s international career has spanned just shy of two decades (18 years) – a period which has seen the talisman make an impressive 184 appearances for his country.
Ronaldo only recently broke the record, which had stood for a little over 15 years. His goal ratio of 0.63 is quite impressive but is far from being the best in history. That honor belongs to former Denmark marksman Poul Nielsen, who scored a mind-boggling 52 goals in only 38 appearances before hanging up his boots a few years shy of a century ago to have a goal ratio of 1.37.
The Breakdown
Ronaldo’s international career began as a member of Portugal’s under-15 side, which he joined in 2001. The former Real Madrid ace established himself as a future star and quickly rose within the ranks to join his country’s under-17, under-20, under-21 and under-23 squads within a span of two years.
In total, Ronaldo made 34 appearances and scored 18 goals before earning a promotion to Portugal’s senior squad in 2003. He made his debut in a 1-0 victory over Kazakhstan on 20 August 2003, where he came on as a substitute for Portugal legend Luís Figo.
CR7 however had to wait for the UEFA Euro 2004 competition to score his first international goal and did so in a 2-1 group stage loss to eventual tournament winners Greece, in what was his eighth appearance.
The former Juventus star went on to have outing after stellar outing including an impressive performance in the 2006 FIFA World Cup where he scored his first World Cup goal after successfully converting a penalty against Iran in Portugal’s second group stage match.
Ronaldo however also had his first taste of controversy during Portugal’s quarter-final clash with England where he was accused of instigating then Manchester United teammate Wayne Rooney’s ejection via red card. The incident is believed to have cost Ronaldo the Best Young Player award, which was subsequently won by Germany standout Lukas Podolski.
Over the course of two years (2004-06), Ronaldo scored 15 goals. His most successful outing to that point was Portugal’s (2006 FIFA) World Cup qualifying campaign where he scored seven goals including a brace in a 7-1 demolition of Russia.
Becoming Captain
Ronaldo continued to elevate his play, garnering the respect and admiration of fans, his peers and the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF). Then FPF president Carlos Silva gave Ronaldo his blessing to assume the role of Captain, which the linchpin did for the first time in a friendly match against perennial rivals Brazil on 6 February 2007.
Most of Ronaldo’s international goals have been scored during his tenure as captain. Ronaldo acquired the now famous number 7 shirt, which has been synonymous with his illustrious career, ahead of his country’s Euro 2008 campaign.
Ronaldo scored another 32 goals from 2007 to 2013 before becoming Portugal’s all-time leading goal scorer in a 5-1 friendly victory over Cameroon on 5 March 2014. His most successful outing to that point was when he scored four goals against Sweden during the 2014 World Cup play-offs.
From 2014 to 2016, Ronaldo scored another 21 international goals in various competitions including friendly matches and World Cup and Euro qualifiers. His first piece of silverware on the international stage came in the Euro 2016 competition after beating then hosts France 1-0 in the finals.
Reaching 100 goals
Ronaldo netted 31 goals from 2017 to 2019. During this period, the Manchester United forward won his second international honor – the UEFA Nations League trophy in 2019. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner however had an underwhelming outing in the 2018 FIFA World Cup where Portugal only managed to reach the last 16 before being eliminated by Uruguay.
CR7 netted his 100th goal during the above-mentioned UEFA Nations League competition. The goal was the first of two he scored in a 2-0 triumph over Sweden. The goal made Ronaldo the second player to reach the 100-goal mark behind Iran legend Ali Daei and the first player to do so in Europe.
The 2008 FIFA World Player of the Year equaled Daei’s tally of 109 international goals after scoring two penalties in a 2-2 draw with France on 23 June 2021. Ronaldo passed Daei to become the highest international goal scorer after scoring two goals in a 2-1 World Cup qualifier against Ireland on September 1, 2021.
The two-time PFA Players’ Player of the Year honoree took his tally to 115 goals after scoring a hat-trick in a 5-0 World Cup qualifier victory against Luxembourg. Ronaldo is now not only the highest international goal scorer but also the most capped European player having made a record 184 appearances for Portugal.
International Records
Ronaldo currently holds a number of international records. He is the first player to score 10 hat-tricks in international football/soccer. CR7 is also the oldest player to score at five European Championships, the oldest player to score in 11 consecutive European tournaments, the highest European goal scorer of all time, the highest scorer in UEFA qualifiers and the joint record holder for the most goals scored in a single UEFA qualifying campaign (14).
The two-time Best FIFA Men’s Player is also the oldest player to score a hat-trick in a FIFA World Cup fixture, the most capped European player and holds the record for scoring against the most national teams (40). A statistical analysis of Ronaldo’s international goals shows that he has managed to score in almost every way imaginable.
The four-time European Golden Shoe winner has scored 87 international goals with either foot and scored another 28 via headers. 16 of his 115 goals came in the form of penalties while another 10 were as a result of direct free-kicks.
At the time of the writing of this article, Ronaldo’s closest challengers for the record of the highest international goals scored are long-time rival and Paris Saint-Germain star Lionel Messi of Argentina and India’s Sunil Chhetri with 80 goals. Ali Mabkhout of the United Arab Emirates is a close second with 79 goals.