Ronaldo’s Final Championship: How the Biggest Debate of the Century Ended – Who is Better, Him or Messi?
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On the evening of July 6th, not just a match between Portugal and Spain concluded at the 2026 World Cup. An era of world football ended. 41-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo will no longer play in World Cups. How much longer Cristiano Ronaldo will play, how much money he has earned, and most importantly, what Pele’s record he still wants to break – in the article Briefly About.
Throughout his career, Ronaldo has won practically everything. Five Ballon d’Or awards, five Champions League titles, the European Championship, the Nations League, over 970 official goals, and the status of the most famous footballer on the planet. Only one thing was missing – the World Cup.
Cristiano’s Latest Record
Ronaldo turned even his final World Cup into a collection of records. He became the first player in history to score in six World Cups. In Qatar-2022 and at the USA-Mexico-Canada-2026 tournament, he continued to perform wonders, scoring three goals.
Another record is his age. At 41, Ronaldo proved that the human body can function much longer than generally believed in modern football. While most stars end their careers after 35, the Portuguese continues to start for the national team and remains one of the world’s top scorers. But even superheroes get tired sometimes.
“I gave my all. I did everything I could, and I leave with a clear conscience. Yes, it was my last World Cup, but now I will have time to reflect and be with my family. I won’t make hasty decisions,” the footballer’s words are quoted by Reuters.
Ronaldo or Messi: Who is Actually Better?
This is arguably the longest debate in football history. For almost twenty years, fans argued hoarsely in pubs, stadiums, and in front of televisions: some called Cristiano Ronaldo the greatest, others Lionel Messi. And today, as the era draws to a close, we can attempt to draw interim conclusions for the first time.
Achievements
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Lionel Messi | |
| Ballon d’Or awards | 5 | 8 |
| Champions League | 5 | 4 |
| World Cup | — | 1 |
| European Championship / Copa América | 1 | 2 |
| Career Goals | 976 | around 890 |
If we look only at trophies, especially after Argentina’s victory in the 2022 World Cup, the formal advantage remains with Messi. But when it comes to longevity, physical condition, and performance, the debate becomes much more complex.
Ronaldo continues to score at 41. Messi has long changed his style of play and increasingly acts as a playmaker. One has won the main tournament on the planet. The other has scored in every (!) Champions League final and became the all-time leading scorer.
However, there is another record that will allow Ronaldo to remain the number one hero for a long time. That is the official 1000 goals.
Defeating Pele Himself! Only 24 Goals Remaining
Ronaldo still has goals he wants to achieve. He has scored so many goals that he is on the verge of a record spanning two centuries – 1000 official goals. After the World Cup, he had 976. Only 24 more goals are needed to reach the historic mark.
Pele also had his “thousand,” but it included friendly matches, exhibition games (including against amateur teams), and matches against city teams and military units.
Therefore, Ronaldo always says that every one of his goals can be verified.
– If I score 1000 goals, great. If not, that’s fine too. All my goals are filmed. They can be verified,” he said in 2024, responding to comparisons with Pele.
So, Cristiano needs to score 24 more goals. With his fantastic form, it will take him a maximum of a year or two. So, he will continue to play in Saudi Arabia, and perhaps even return for Euro 2028.
Scandals: Three Stories That Haunted Ronaldo
No legend is without major scandals. Over two decades, Cristiano Ronaldo’s name has appeared on front pages not only for his goals.
The most serious incident involved accusations from American Kathryn Mayorga of rape, which she claimed occurred in Las Vegas in 2009. In 2018, the case returned to the spotlight after publications by the German magazine Der Spiegel. Ronaldo categorically denied the accusations.
“Rape is a disgusting crime. I completely deny the accusations made against me,” he wrote then on social media.
The Las Vegas police reopened the investigation, but the US Attorney’s Office in 2019 declined to press criminal charges, stating that there was insufficient evidence to proceed with the case in court.
Another painful blow came from Spain. In 2018, Ronaldo admitted to tax irregularities related to income from image rights during his time at Real Madrid. As part of an agreement with the prosecution, he received a suspended sentence and agreed to pay about €18.8 million in fines and back taxes, avoiding imprisonment.
And finally, perhaps the most unconventional scandal, in which many sided with CR7. At a press conference before Euro 2020, Ronaldo silently removed two bottles of Coca-Cola from the table, placed a bottle of water in front of him, and uttered one word: Água (“Water”).
This was enough for the video to go viral worldwide within hours. Media reported that Coca-Cola’s market value temporarily dropped by billions of dollars after this incident, although analysts later explained that stock fluctuations were due to several market factors, not just the footballer’s action. But for the tabloids, this story was perfect: one gesture was louder than thousands of advertising contracts and instantly drew attention to a healthy lifestyle.
A Billionaire with a Perfect Family
And Cristiano Ronaldo is today (and tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow) the richest footballer in the world. According to Forbes estimates, his fortune exceeds $1.2 billion.
In recent years, he has remained the highest-paid athlete in the world. His main contract is with the Saudi club Al-Nassr FC, where his annual income is estimated at over $200 million, including commercial deals. A separate story is his lifetime contract with Nike, which experts estimate at approximately $1 billion for its entire duration.
In his personal life, there is also harmony. For almost ten years, he has been accompanied by Spanish model Georgina Rodríguez. Georgina is his support, muse, and the mother of two children, plus three more children born via surrogacy: Cristiano Jr. (born 2010, already showing great promise), twins Eva and Mateo (2017), Alana Martina (2017), and the youngest, Bella Esmeralda (2022). Ronaldo himself has often said that it is his family that helps him withstand the pressure that has accompanied him throughout his career.
But the story is not over yet! We await the 1000 – and we will write more about the legendary career of a self-made footballer.