The Problem With Goal Counts: Why 700 Means Different Things to Different People
Let’s be clear about this: there is no universal standard for what counts as an “official” goal. FIFA doesn’t keep a master list. No central database certifies achievements. Each club, federation, and statistician defines it differently. Some count wartime matches. Others exclude friendlies. A goal scored in a testimonial might count for one historian and not for another. That’s why Josef Bican, the Austrian-Czech legend from the 1930s to 1950s, is listed by RSSSF (Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation) with over 800 goals—yet barely registers in mainstream conversation.
And that’s exactly where the myth of the 700-goal club gets messy. Take Pelé. Santos and FIFA claim 1,283 goals. But only 757 of those were in matches recognized as competitive by most statisticians. The rest? Charities, friendlies, exhibition games where defenders basically let him walk in. Was it impressive? Undoubtedly. Was it equivalent to scoring in a Champions League final? Not even close.
Official vs. Unofficial: Where the Line Gets Blurred
You might assume the line is clear: league matches, domestic cups, continental competitions, internationals. Done. But reality isn’t so neat. For example, the Mitropa Cup in the 1930s was a big deal in Central Europe—top clubs, intense competition. Should Bican’s 219 goals in that tournament count more than a modern player’s five in a pre-season Asian tour? Probably. Yet most records sideline it. And then there’s the issue of club archives. Slavia Prague’s meticulous records from the 1940s list Bican scoring six goals in a single game—twice. Try doing that today against organized defenses, video analysis, and Premier League fitness regimens.
Statistical Organizations and Their Slight Variations
IFFHS (International Federation of Football History & Statistics) is the closest thing we have to an authority. They’ve audited Bican’s career and still credit him with 805 goals in 518 matches. That’s a 1.56 goals-per-game average. Insane. Yet, when you check Google, it’s Ronaldo and Messi who dominate the “700 goals” search results. Why? Because IFFHS data is respected, but not universally adopted. FIFA’s website, media outlets, even UEFA often go with more conservative counts—focusing only on top-tier leagues and international matches post-1950. Which explains why Bican remains a footnote outside Austria and the Czech Republic.
Lionel Messi: The 700 Club Entry That Broke the Internet
June 12, 2019. Camp Nou. Messi scores against Athletic Club. The scoreboard ticks. The crowd erupts. Not just because it’s a goal—it’s number 700 in his professional career. The media went wild. Headlines everywhere. “El Mágico reaches 700!” “A milestone for the ages!” And yes, it was impressive. But here’s the thing: Messi’s 700 includes 672 for Barcelona, 103 for Argentina, and—this is key—only goals in competitive fixtures. No friendlies, no testimonial matches. That gives his number more weight in purist circles.
And still, people don’t think about this enough: Messi took 870 official appearances to reach 700. That’s a goal every 1.24 games. Not as flashy as Bican’s average, sure. But over a 20-year career spent mostly at the highest level of competition, with defenders hunting him like he’s the last piece of cake at a family reunion? That’s consistency on a completely different plane. His free kicks alone—over 50 scored—would rank him in the top 1% of all-time scorers if counted separately. (Which, again, no one does, but imagine a league just for dead-ball specialists.)
The Breakdown: Where Messi’s Goals Came From
La Liga: 474 goals. Copa del Rey: 56. Champions League: 120. Supercups and Club World Cup: 27. Internationally: 103 (and rising). These aren’t just numbers—they map a career shaped by relentless precision. His peak? Between 2011 and 2013, he scored 91 goals in a calendar year—a record since broken only by himself in terms of consistency, never surpassed in total. To give a sense of scale: that’s more than entire Premier League teams have scored in some seasons. And he did it while being double-marked, kicked, and surrounded by defenders who studied his every twitch.
Cristiano Ronaldo: The First to 700, and Then Some
Ronaldo hit 700 in September 2019—just months after Messi. Juventus vs. Sassuolo. A free kick. Cold. Clinical. Calculated. But here’s the nuance: Ronaldo reached the mark faster in terms of time. He did it in 16 seasons as a professional; Messi took 17. But—and this matters—Ronaldo’s tally includes more international goals (130 as of 2024), thanks to representing Portugal in more tournaments. His ratio is slightly lower: 1 goal every 1.36 games. Still elite. Just not quite Messi-level frequency.
What sets Ronaldo apart is longevity across leagues. He scored over 100 goals in England (103 for Man United), over 100 in Spain (105 for Real Madrid), over 100 in Italy (107 for Juventus), and remains the all-time top scorer in the Champions League (140). That versatility is rare. Most strikers peak in one country. He reinvented himself in three. And that’s not even mentioning his aerial dominance—over 140 headed goals in his career, which is like an entire season’s output for a target man.
Physical Transformation and Goal-Scoring Evolution
You can actually see his evolution in the numbers. Early United years: 1 goal every 2.1 games. Prime Madrid: 1 every 1.1. Later Juventus: 1 every 1.4. He slowed—but adapted. Less dribbling, more positioning. Fewer long-range bombs, more tap-ins and penalty-box poaching. Because athleticism fades. Intelligence doesn’t. His training regimen—he reportedly sleeps 5 hours a night, then naps twice a day—has become a meme. But the results speak: at 39, he’s still scoring in the Saudi Pro League, averaging a goal every 1.8 games. Not bad for someone some said was “washed up” at 35.
Bican vs. Modern Giants: A Forgotten Legend?
Josef Bican was born in 1913. Played until he was 44. Scored goals in four different decades. His club career spanned Slavia Prague, Admira Vienna, and Rapid Bucharest. His style? Ruthless efficiency. Left-footed, right-footed, headers, volleys—he didn’t care how, just that it went in. The thing is, he played in an era without floodlights, synthetic pitches, or GPS tracking. Yet he averaged more than two goals per game for over a decade. Try doing that today—good luck getting past a mid-table La Liga defense that spends $5 million on analytics.
Experts disagree on whether to rank him above Messi or Ronaldo. Some say the competition was weaker. Others point out that wartime matches inflated his stats. But honestly, it is unclear how you compare eras like that. It’s a bit like comparing a 1920s biplane pilot to a SpaceX astronaut—both pioneers, but in incomparable contexts. Still, if we’re talking pure volume and frequency, Bican’s numbers are untouchable.
Ronaldo vs. Messi: Who Owes Their 700 More to Teammates?
Here’s a spicy take: Messi’s 700 were more dependent on setup. At Barcelona, he had Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets carving open defenses like butter. Ronaldo, especially at Real Madrid and later at Juventus, often had to create his own chances. Does that make his total more impressive? Not necessarily. But it shifts the narrative. Messi’s genius was in movement and timing. Ronaldo’s was in power and positioning.
And let’s not pretend international play is the same. Portugal had solid squads, but never the generational talent Spain enjoyed in the 2010s. Yet Ronaldo carried them to a Euro 2016 title—scoring in every round despite being injured. Messi, meanwhile, struggled for years to win with Argentina until 2021. That’s not a knock—it’s context. National team success doesn’t define goal totals, but it colors perception.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did Pelé Really Score Over 1,000 Goals?
Yes—but only if you count exhibition and charity matches. In competitive football, most historians accept around 757. That’s still monumental. But calling it “1,000 goals” is like saying you ran a marathon because you jogged around the block 100 times. Technically true, contextually misleading.
Who Was the Fastest to 700 Goals?
Ronaldo reached it in fewer days—about 5,807 from his professional debut. Messi took 5,874. The difference? Eight months. Not much, but in football years, that’s an eternity. And that’s another reason fans debate them endlessly.
Are There Any Active Players Close to 700?
Robert Lewandowski has around 590 (as of 2024). Karim Benzema retired with 523. Erling Haaland? At 24, he’s at about 240. If he scores 30+ per season, he could hit 700 by 2032. But staying healthy, avoiding decline, and maintaining peak form for 8 more years? That’s asking a lot. Suffice to say, we won’t see another 700-goals player every decade.
The Bottom Line: 700 Is Just a Number—Context Is King
I find this overrated: the obsession with round numbers. 700. 800. 1,000. It makes for great headlines, but it flattens the story. Bican’s goals came in a different football universe. Messi’s are artistry under pressure. Ronaldo’s are athletic persistence. To rank them solely by total is like judging novels by word count. The beauty is in the details. The footwork. The context. The era. The opposition. So who scored 700 goals? More than you think. But who earned it? Now that’s a conversation worth having.