Who are the best players in the history of football?
Football is, without a doubt, the most practiced sport in the world. Across the globe, it brings together several billion talents.
Speaking of talents, since the existence of football, and especially the national and world competitions organized around this discipline, several exceptional players have succeeded one another on the podiums.
Many of them have, moreover, marked the history of football thanks to their incredible statistics. And above all many have inspired thefreestyle soccerwith their wild dribbling. So, who are these remarkable players, and how did they make their name through football?
Pele
Pelé, a Brazilian footballer, is one of the best-known figures in the world of football.
Throughout his career, he has managed to build up an impressive track record, to name only:
- 3-time World Cup winner;
- 10-time winner of the São Paulo State Championship;
- 11 times top scorer in the São Paulo State Championship;
- Best player of the 1970 World Cup;
- “Player of the 20th century” (FIFA).
After a great career in the world of football, Pélé passed away at the age of 82 on December 29, 2022.
Diego Maradona
Maradona, the golden kid of his nickname, is an Argentine footballer. He is a football legend and is distinguished by his many merits at club level, in the Argentina national team, as well as by his numerous records and personal distinctions.
He notably helped the Argentina junior team win the 1979 Junior World Cup. With the Argentina national team, he also won the 1986 World Cup.
In terms of personal achievements, Maradona has more than 30 records and distinctions including:
- Best player and best passer of the 1986 World Cup;
- “Legend player” in 2003 (Golden Foot);
- Ballon d’Or France Football in 1995;
- “Player of the 20th century” (FIFA).
Maradona passed away at the age of 60 on November 25, 2020.
Lionel Messi
Messi is an Argentinian footballer whose name no longer needs to be introduced. Indeed, in less than 20 years of playing professional football, he has already accumulated individual, team and club records.
To cite a few of his distinctions:
- 7 times Ballon d’Or;
- 2 times “Best World Player of the Year” (FIFA);
- 6 times “European Golden Shoe”;
- Winner of the 2022 World Cup.
Since the start of his professional career, Messi has often been referred to as the new Maradona due to his height and his similar style of play.
Cristiano Ronaldo
Nicknamed CR7, Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the best footballers of his generation, even in the history of football. Maintaining a sporting rivalry with Lionel Messi, CR7 has as many distinctions and personal records as the latter. Below are some examples:
- 4 times European Golden Shoe;
- 5 times Ballon d’Or;
- Only player in the history of football to have won the National Championship, the National Cup, the National Super Cup, the UEFA Champions League, the FIFA Club World Cup, the Golden Ball, the Shoe gold as well as the prize for the best world player of the year with 2 different clubs which are Real Madrid and Manchester United.
Currently, this footballer of Portuguese nationality plays in the Al-Nassr FC club.
Johan Cruyff
Still in the top 10 best player in the history of football, let’s talk about Johan Cruyff who is a Dutch footballer who played the position of striker and subsequently became a coach at FC Barcelona and Ajax Amsterdam.
As a player, Johan Cruyff won the Ballon d’Or 3 times. He is, moreover, the first football talent to achieve this feat. With his team he was also a runner-up in the 1974 World Cup.
Zinedine Zidane
Of French nationality, Zinédine Zidane is an outstanding footballer who has left a remarkable mark on the world of football. As a player, he distinguished himself from others with atypical playing techniques, an ability to lead the game and both precise and decisive passes.
In terms of collective victory, Zinédine Zidane has to his credit 1 world champion title in 1998. That same year, he also won the Golden Ball and was crowned FIFA’s best footballer of the year.
Franz Beckenbauer
Born in Germany and playing the position of central defender, Franz Beckenbauer, through his impressive career, is considered one of the best footballers in history.
Indeed, to his credit, this talent has 2 Golden Balls, 4 titles “German Footballer of the Year”, “Best German Player of the Century IFFHS”, etc.
As a team, we see him evolve in the club Bayern Munich with which he won several national championships. In 1974, he was selected for the West Germany national team and won the World Cup.
Michael Platini
Before Zinédine Zidane, Michel Platini was the one who wore the number 10 jersey of the France national team. During his career, he led this team to third and fourth places in the 1986 and 1982 World Cups. He also won 7 titles during his years with Juventus.
In terms of individual awards, Michel Platini won 3 Golden Balls, 3 Golden Elevens and 1 Silver Eleven. He has also been voted top scorer on numerous occasions.
George Best
Through his liveliness, his technique and his exceptional dribbling skills, George Best, a footballer of Northern Irish origin, is one of the best football talents in history. During his career, he mainly played for the Manchester United club, where he won numerous titles and where he was qualified as the top scorer with 136 goals scored in 361 matches.
In 1968, George Best won the Golden Ball and was also named FWA English Championship Player of the Year.
Ronaldo Nazario
In tenth place in the top 10 best player in the history of football, we find Ronaldo, a Brazilian footballer who made a name for himself thanks to his atypical style of play and his ability to adapt to different tactical patterns. Throughout his professional career, Ronaldo played within major clubs such as FC Barcelona, Inter Milan, Real Madrid and AC Milan with whom he was able to win numerous individual and collective titles.
Ronaldinho
Of Brazilian origin, Ronaldinho stands out from other footballers with a unique style of play where speed, inventiveness, improvisation, skill and high speed of execution are the key words. Throughout his career, he collected more than 50 personal distinctions and also won several titles with clubs like FC Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and AC Milan.
Paolo Maldini
Italian footballer who belonged to AC Milan throughout his professional career, Paolo Maldini, defender, is one of the best footballers in history. To his credit, and as a collective victory, he has, among others, 7 Italian championship titles, 5 European Super Cup championship titles and 5 Champions League winner titles.
