Who is Better:    Messi or Ronaldo?

Introduction

     Are you ready to read about who is better, Messi or Ronaldo? Well if that is the case, then you're in the right place.

     This is one of the most debated questions in soccer history, so I hope you’re ready to learn about the famous international soccer stars, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.                                         C

Why Did They Start Playing Soccer?

   Cristiano Ronaldo became interested in soccer because his father was an equipment manager at a boys soccer club. That is where he first learned to love the sport of soccer. 

     Lionel Messi’s grandmother is the person who convinced him to play soccer. Messi was smaller and younger than the other kids, but his grandmother insisted he should be able to play and he scored two goals. His grandmother’s name is Celia Oliveira Cuccittini.

What Teams Did They Play For? 

    Ronaldo has played for a number of clubs over the years, including Real Madrid, Manchester United, and Juventus. He also played with the national team for Portugal in the World Cup. Ronaldo recently signed with a new club called Al Nassr FC in Saudi Arabia, starting a page in his career.

     At the international level, Messi has played for the clubs FC Barcelona and Paris Saint Germain (PSG). He has also played with the national team for Argentina. Messi recently signed with the MLS team Inter Miami and will start playing for them in the summer of 2023.

Messi’s Accomplishments

     One of Messi's accomplishments is that when he was 18 years old, he was the youngest player to score for Barcelona.

     Messi led Barcelona to the Champions League titles and to the La Liga. The La Liga is one of the most popular professional sports leagues in the world. Then in the next season, Messi won the title for the third consecutive World Player of the Year Award. The award is called the Ballon d’Or award (The Gold Ball award)

     Messi played in the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship squad on Argentina's team. Messi scored two goals in five matches. He also won the Gold Medal in Beijing with Argentina at the 2008 Summer Olympics. 

    Messi helped the club Barcelona win three trophies during the 2014-2016 seasons. With 43 goals, Messi was the leading scorer for his team. This resulted in his fifth Ballon d'Or Award as the best player in the world in 2016, the same number as Christiano Ronaldo. But Messi went on to earn two more Ballon d'Or Awards in 2019 and 2021, and possibly more in the future.

     In 2022, Messi helped Argentina to win the World Cup. This was Messi's first ever World Cup championship. Lionel Messi is the only player in soccer history who has managed to win the Olympic Games, Champions League, Copa América, World Cup and the Ballon d'Or.

Ronaldo’s Accomplishments

     Among Ronaldo’s many accomplishments, he has won the Ballon d’Or award for World Player of the Year five times.

    When Ronaldo was 16, Manchester United paid over 14 million dollars to have Ronaldo play for their team. Ronaldo surprised everyone with his deft skill in soccer and his foot work to the point were some Manchester United players asked their managers to sign young Ronaldo. 14 million dollars was a record to pay a player that much money at his age.

    In the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Ronaldo helped his team Portugal to win 1 out of 3 matches. The only goal he scored was in the game that Portugal beat Morocco 2-1.

    In the 2004 FA Challenge Cup final, Ronaldo scored a hat trick and won the championship. In 2008, Ronaldo set a record for the most goals scored for Manchester United, when he scored 33 goals in a season as a wing shooter.   

     Real Madrid paid Ronaldo 131 million dollars to join La Liga. Ronaldo was the top goal scorer for the La Liga BBVA  in the 2014 through 2015 seasons.  He also achieved his third top scorers award. BBVA is a Spanish financial services company based in Madrid and Bilbao, Spain.

   Three times Ronaldo also won the FIFA Men's Best Player Award, in 2008 with Manchester United, and in 2016 and 2017 with Real Madrid.

Conclusion

     After a lot of research and time spent, I have come to the conclusion that both Messi and Ronaldo are amazing soccer players. Ronaldo has been nominated for the Golden Ball Award 5 times, but Messi has won the Golden Ball Award 7 times. 

      Messi has also helped lead his team to win the Olympic Gold Medal, the Champions League, the Copa América, and the World Cup, but Ronaldo's teams have not won the World Cup or the Olympic Gold Medal. 

     After considering these facts and accomplishments, I think Lionel Messi is better than Cristiano Ronaldo.