The Best Soccer Players Of All Time

Ranker Soccer
Updated October 1, 2023 4.4M votes 465.1K voters 3.1M views
Over 465.1K Ranker voters have come together to rank this list of The Best Soccer Players Of All Time
Voting Rules

Vote up the greatest soccer players to ever lace 'em up and take the pitch.

Who is the best soccer player of all time? Whether you call it soccer, futbol, football, or ‘the beautiful game,' it's a transcendent sport and the most popular competition in the world. To become one of the greatest soccer players of all time, these famous soccer players must train relentlessly, outperform peers, and shine in the biggest moments, whether via stunning goals, staunch defense or unbeatable goalkeeping. So, who are the best soccer players ever? Who are the greatest footballers to ever play the game? 

When it comes to the top soccer players ever, Pele must be #1. The Brazilian soccer prodigy set the game on fire and led Brazil to 3 World Cup championships. Although many would argue their case for the best soccer player ever might be one of many Ballon d'Or winners and international soccer legends like Alfredo Di Stéfano, Lev Yashin, George Weah, Johan Cruyff, George Best, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Marco van Basten or Ronaldo. 

Ronaldinho, Kaka, Xavi, Iniesta, and Roberto Carlos are among many of the  21st century footballing greats. Then there's the like's of the best soccer players in the world today, a few of whom also might have claim to the title, such as Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, Kylian Mbappe, Robert Lewandowski, and Karim Benzema.

Vote up the best soccer players in the world ever, and help decide who deserves to be remembered as the best players in football history.

Most divisive: Kaká
Ranked by
  • Lionel Messi
    1

    Lionel Messi

    Forward
    287,977 votes
    • Birthplace: Rosario, Argentina
    Lionel "Leo" Andrés Messi (born 24 June 1987) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays for Paris Saint-Germain and captains the Argentina national team. Often considered the best player in the world and widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, Messi has won a record six Ballon d'Or awards, a record six European Golden Shoes, and in 2020 was named to the Ballon d'Or Dream Team. Until leaving the club in 2021, he had spent his entire professional career with Barcelona, where he won a club-record 35 trophies, including ten La Liga titles, seven Copa del Rey titles and four UEFA Champions Leagues. A prolific goalscorer and creative playmaker, Messi holds the records for most goals in La Liga (474), a La Liga and European league season (50), most hat-tricks in La Liga (36) and the UEFA Champions League (8), and most assists in La Liga (192), a La Liga and European league season (21) and the Copa América (17). He's scored over 750 senior career goals.
  • Cristiano Ronaldo
    2

    Cristiano Ronaldo

    Forward
    246,592 votes
    • Birthplace: Funchal, Madeira, Portugal
    Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro (born February 5, 1985) is a Portuguese professional soccer player who plays as a forward for Saudi Professional League club Al Nassr and captains the Portugal national team. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, Ronaldo has won five Ballon d'Or awards[note 3] and four European Golden Shoes, the most by a European player. He has won 32 trophies in his career, including seven league titles, five UEFA Champions Leagues, the UEFA European Championship, and the UEFA Nations League. Ronaldo holds the records for most appearances (183), goals (140), and assists (42) in the Champions League, goals in the European Championship (14), international goals (118), and joint-most international appearances (196). He is one of the few players to have made over 1,100 professional career appearances and has scored over 800 official senior career goals for club and country. He is the only player to score in five FIFA World Cup tournaments.
  • Ronaldinho
    3

    Ronaldinho

    Attacking Midfielder
    181,479 votes
    • Birthplace: Porto Alegre, Brazil
    Ronaldo de Assis Moreira (born 21 March 1980), commonly known as Ronaldinho Gaúcho (Brazilian Portuguese: [ʁonawˈdʒĩɲu ga'uʃu]) or simply Ronaldinho, is a Brazilian former professional footballer and ambassador for Barcelona. He played mostly as an attacking midfielder, but was also deployed as a forward or a winger. He played the bulk of his career at European clubs Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona and A.C. Milan as well as playing for the Brazilian national team. Often considered one of the best players of his generation and regarded by many as one of the greatest of all time, Ronaldinho won two FIFA World Player of the Year awards and a Ballon d'Or. He was renowned for his technical skills and creativity; due to his agility, pace and dribbling ability, as well as his use of tricks, feints, overhead kicks, no-look passes and accuracy from free-kicks. Ronaldinho made his career debut for Grêmio, in 1998. At age 20, he moved to Paris Saint-Germain in France before signing for Barcelona in 2003. In his second season with Barcelona, he won his first FIFA World Player of the Year award, as Barcelona won La Liga. The season that followed is considered one of the best in his career as he was instrumental in Barcelona winning the UEFA Champions League, their first in fourteen years, as well as another La Liga title, giving Ronaldinho his first career double. After scoring two spectacular solo goals in El Clásico, Ronaldinho became the second Barcelona player, after Diego Maradona in 1983, to receive a standing ovation from Real Madrid fans at the Santiago Bernabéu. Ronaldinho also received his second FIFA World Player of the Year award, as well as the Ballon d'Or. Following a second-place La Liga finish to rivals Real Madrid in the 2006–07 season and an injury plagued 2007–08 season, Ronaldinho departed Barcelona to join Milan. He then returned to Brazil to play for Flamengo in 2011 and Atlético Mineiro a year later where he won the Copa Libertadores, before moving to Mexico to play for Querétaro and then back to Brazil to play for Fluminense in 2015. Ronaldinho accumulated numerous other individual awards in his career. He was included in the UEFA Team of the Year and the FIFA World XI three times, named UEFA Club Footballer of the Year in 2006 and the South American Footballer of the Year in 2013, and was named in the FIFA 100, a list of the world's greatest living players compiled by Pelé. At international level, Ronaldinho played 97 matches for the Brazil national team, scoring 33 goals and representing his country in two FIFA World Cups. He was an integral part of the 2002 FIFA World Cup-winning team in Korea and Japan, starring alongside Ronaldo and Rivaldo in an attacking trio, scoring two goals, including a free-kick from 40 yards out against England, registering two assists and being named in the FIFA World Cup All-Star Team. As captain, he led Brazil to their second Confederations Cup title in 2005 and was named Man of the Match in the final. Ronaldinho scored three goals in the tournament, taking his total to nine, making him the competition's joint all-time leading goalscorer.
  • Ronaldo
    4

    Ronaldo

    Forward
    146,232 votes
    • Birthplace: Brazil, Rio de Janeiro
    Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima (born 18 September 1976), commonly known as Ronaldo or Ronaldo Nazário, is a Brazilian business owner, president of La Liga club Real Valladolid, owner of Brasileiro Série B club Cruzeiro and a retired professional footballer who played as a striker. Popularly dubbed O Fenômeno ('The Phenomenon') and also nicknamed R9, he is widely considered as one of the greatest players of all time. As a multi-functional striker who brought a new dimension to the position, Ronaldo has been the influence for a generation of strikers that have followed. His individual accolades include being named FIFA World Player of the Year three times and winning two Ballon d'Or awards.
  • Diego Maradona
    5

    Diego Maradona

    Forward, Midfielder
    171,546 votes
    • Birthplace: Lanús, Argentina
    Diego Armando Maradona (30 October 1960 – 25 November 2020) was an Argentine retired professional footballer. He was widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time. He was one of the two joint winners of the FIFA Player of the 20th Century award. Maradona's vision, passing, ball control and dribbling skills were combined with his small stature (1.65 m or 5 ft 5 in), which gave him a low center of gravity allowing him to maneuver better than most other football players; he would often dribble past multiple opposing players on a run. His presence and leadership on the field had a great effect on his team's general performance, while he would often be singled out by the opposition.
  • Zinedine Zidane
    6

    Zinedine Zidane

    Midfielder
    144,072 votes
    • Birthplace: France, Marseille
    Zinedine Yazid Zidane (born 23 June 1972), nicknamed "Zizou", is a French former professional football player and current manager of Real Madrid. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, Zidane was an elite playmaker, renowned for his elegance, vision, ball control and technique, and played as an attacking midfielder for Cannes, Bordeaux, Juventus and Real Madrid. At club level, Zidane won two Serie A league titles with Juventus, before he moved to Real Madrid for a world record fee of €77.5 million in 2001, which remained unmatched for the next eight years. In Spain, Zidane won the La Liga title and the UEFA Champions League, with his left-foot volleyed winner in the 2002 UEFA Champions League Final considered to be one of the greatest goals in the competition's history. Zidane also won an Intercontinental Cup and a UEFA Super Cup with both teams. Capped 108 times by France, Zidane won the 1998 FIFA World Cup, scoring twice in the final and being named to the All-Star Team, while also winning UEFA Euro 2000, being named Player of the Tournament. The World Cup triumph made him a national hero in France, and he received the Légion d'honneur in 1998. He also received the Golden Ball for player of the tournament at the 2006 World Cup, despite his infamous sending off in the final against Italy for headbutting Marco Materazzi in the chest. He retired as the fourth-most capped player in France history. Zidane received many individual accolades as a player, including being named the FIFA World Player of the Year in 1998, 2000 and 2003, and winning the 1998 Ballon d'Or. He was Ligue 1 Player of the Year in 1996, Serie A Footballer of the Year in 2001, and La Liga Best Foreign Player in 2002. In 2004, he was named in the FIFA 100, a list of the world's greatest living players compiled by Pelé, and in the same year was named the best European footballer of the past 50 years in the UEFA Golden Jubilee Poll. Zidane is one of eight players to have won the FIFA World Cup, the UEFA Champions League and the Ballon d'Or, and was the ambassador for Qatar's successful bid to stage the 2022 FIFA World Cup, the first Arab country to host the tournament.After retiring as a player, Zidane transitioned into coaching, and began as his head coaching career at Real Madrid Castilla. He remained in the position for two years before taking the helm of the first team in January 2016. In his two and a half seasons with Madrid, Zidane won the UEFA Champions League an unprecedented three times consecutively, a La Liga title, a Supercopa de España, and the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup twice each. His success saw him named Best FIFA Men's Coach in 2017, but he resigned in May 2018. Following poor results by Real Madrid in the subsequent months, Zidane returned to the club as manager in March 2019.