Lionel Messi Exceedingly Beats Cristiano Ronaldo In This Key Sports Metric

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro are two of the most popular footballers worldwide. The two star athletes are almost always compared to see who is the better player.

Over the years, football fans have debated on who is the greatest of all time or the “GOAT” between Barcelona’s Messi and Juventus’ Ronaldo. The two sports stars are neck-to-neck in both game metrics and earnings.

Between May 2020 and May 2021, Messi earned roughly $130 million from his game salary and off-court endeavors. On the other hand, Ronaldo was not far behind with $120 million total earnings in the same period, as per Forbes.

Throughout their careers, the two football stars have built up their fortune and fame, with Messi now having an estimated net worth of $600 million and Ronaldo following closely behind with roughly $500 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

Messi reportedly earned an estimated annual salary of $168 million since signing a contract in 2017 that expires this June. Ronaldo is lagging behind with an estimated $70 million from his football contract, the outlet said.

But the more common comparison between the two players is their performance on the court. In terms of overall goals, Ronaldo narrowly edges out over Messi with a 674-672 score. However, the Portuguese athlete has a two-season headstart against the Argentinian player, as per Goal. Messi still has a higher goal per season average than Ronaldo at 39.5 to 35.

The key sports metric that Messi stomps Ronaldo in is club assists; the Barcelona star has a total of 226 compared to the Juventus player’s 139. The numbers represent their career assists from 2009 until 2021.

Messi and Ronaldo also have endorsements that contribute to the majority of their yearly income. Barcelona’s star athlete has a lifetime deal with Adidas, which is rivaled by the Juventus player’s lifetime deal with Nike.

The two football athletes also have their own brands, with Messi launching his first retail outlet called the “Messi Store,” a clothing line, in 2019 in Barcelona. In comparison, Ronaldo makes profit off his CR7-branded clothing, accessories, hotels and gyms.