Who has scored the most goals in international football? Lionel Messi third on all-time list in pursuit of Cristiano Ronaldo record

Lionel Messi reached another personal milestone as Argentina extended their unbeaten run to 35 matches in all competitions.

The Paris Saint-Germain forward scored twice in the closing stages of a 3-0 friendly victory over Jamaica, which took him to 100 victories in Albiceleste colours in 164 matches.

Messi is also now just the third male player in history to score 90 or more international goals and, if he continues playing beyond the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, it’s not inconceivable he could become the all-time leading goalscorer — a record that just happens to be held by long-time rival Cristiano Ronaldo.

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Who has scored the most goals in international football?

Cristiano Ronaldo holds the record for the most goals scored in men’s international football. The Manchester United and Portugal star has 117 goals in 191 senior appearances for his country.

Ronaldo broke the long-standing record held by Iran’s Ali Daei when he scored twice against the Republic of Ireland in September 2021. Those two remain the only men’s players who have reached a century of international goals, although Messi needs only 10 more to join them in that group.

Most international goals: Men’s all-time top 10

*Denotes active player

Even if Ronaldo and Messi continue to play well into their 40s, it is almost impossible for them to catch the goal tallies of the leading women’s international goalscorers.

The top-scoring player in women’s international football — and, indeed, overall — is Canada’s Christine Sinclair, who has managed a staggering 190 goals in 317 appearances in 22 years.

She is six goals ahead of USWNT great Abby Wambach, who retired back in 2015. The top 10 is dominated by USA stars, who make up half of the list, although all but Alex Morgan have retired.

The other active player closest to Sinclair’s record is Jordan’s Maysa Jbarah, who boasts a remarkable goal-per-game rate of 1.04 having scored 117 times in just 113 international matches.

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Most international goals: Women’s all-time top 10

*Denotes active player