Who is the world's No. 1 football player - Messi, Mbappe, or Ronaldo? 

While football is the most popular team sport in the world, more often than not, individual brilliance takes precedence. It paves way for further debates and discussions as to who the world’s No. 1 football player is. 

The popular choice, courtesy of his exploits in the FIFA World Cup 2022, is Lionel Messi. The Argentine forward is widely regarded as the greatest footballer of all time.

World’s No. 1 football player - Lionel Messi 

Lionel Messi made his mark for Barcelona as a teenage sensation and soon became one of football’s brightest shining stars. He scored his first professional goal against Albacete in 2005. As it turned out, the assist was provided by one of football’s great magicians himself, Ronaldinho. 

In a career that is still going strong after nearly two decades, the Argentine stalwart has achieved nearly everything in world football. 

Messi is a seven-time Ballon d’Or recipient, 10-time La Liga champion and four-time Champions League winner with FC Barcelona. He scored 672 goals for the Catalan giants, before making his mark in France with Paris Saint-Germain. 

For Argentina, Messi is the country’s leading goal-scorer and four goals shy of becoming the first South American footballer to score 100 international goals. 

He won the Copa America in 2021, scoring four goals and assisting five times, as Argentina defeated Brazil in the final.

Lionel Messi goals

Kylian Mbappe - heir apparent for the current world No. 1

Very few football players in history earned accolades like Kylian Mbappe before turning 24. Having played a crucial role in France’s World Cup triumph in 2018, the French prodigy set the stage on fire in Qatar 2022 as well. 

After making his mark with Monaco in club football, he made a world record move (for a teenager) to Paris Saint-Germain. His exploits since moving to France’s capital made the football pundits believe that he is Lionel Messi’s heir as the next greatest player in world football.

Kylian Mbappe goals

Cristiano Ronaldo - greatest goal-scorer of all time

Cristiano Ronaldo is as widely regarded as the greatest football player of all time as his counterpart Lionel Messi. The duo shared one of the greatest sporting rivalries that saw them excel at the highest level for over 15 years. 

Ronaldo is a five-time Ballon d’Or winner and is one of the few players to win five Champions League titles. He is Real Madrid’s all-time leading goal-scorer, scoring 450 times in 438 matches. He is also the leading goal-scorer in professional football history.

Cristiano Ronaldo goals

Photo Credit: Alamy