And so it was at Lusail Stadium today, as the greatest player the game has known won its ultimate trophy in dramatic fashion. Lionel Messi, at 35, has finally won the World Cup with Argentina

Messi’s only victory so far came in 2019 for his performances in 2018-19, when he scored 51 goals in 50 games (still only his sixth best goalscoring season in his career) as Barcelona won LaLiga

After snatching away the Champions League trophy, six months later Messi beat Ronaldo to the Ballon d’Or too, winning it for the first of seven times in the next 12 years.

^{After years of heartbreak with Argentina, Messi finally won a major international trophy when he captained the Albiceleste to a Copa América title in July 2021. It was Argentina's first major} When looking at both players' complete goal totals including Ronaldo's stint in Saudi Arabia plus international matches as well, the Portuguese star leads the way with 838 goals to Messi's 807. Messi has endorsed sportswear company Adidas since 2006. According to France Football, he was the world's highest-paid footballer for five years out of six between 2009 and 2014, and was ranked the world's highest-paid athlete by Forbes in 2019 and 2022. Messi was among Time ' s 100 most influential people in the world in 2011, 2012, and 2023 .