All 32 Soccer Players, ranked by 404 players
Players rank Lionel Messi #1: it wins 84.1% of its matchups (n = 1,132) and took the title in 123 of 404 brackets. Cristiano Ronaldo and Pele follow. Disagree? Greatest Soccer Players of All Time Ranked is one tap away.
Updated hourly · last refreshed November 15, 2026
Brackets finished404
Head-to-head picks9,852
Entrants ranked32of 32
Lionel Messi title share30.4%n = 404
Title odds
Share of 404 finished brackets won
- Lionel Messi30.4% (123 of 404)
- Cristiano Ronaldo28.7% (116 of 404)
- Pele9.7% (39 of 404)
- Diego Maradona4.5% (18 of 404)
- Ronaldinho2.7% (11 of 404)
- Neymar Jr.2.7% (11 of 404)
Soccer Players: the community tier list
Built from win rates across 9,852 picks. Tiers use the win rate steadied toward 50% for entrants with few matchups (S from 75%, A 60%, B 50%, C 40%, D 25%). Steadying pulls a small sample toward the middle, so a high raw rate can sit a tier lower and a low one a tier higher than the rate shown, which is the raw one. What does S tier mean?
Stier, win rate 75% or more
- Lionel Messi84.1%
- Cristiano Ronaldo81.9%
Atier, win rate 60% or more
- Pele69.7%
- Diego Maradona65.5%
- Ronaldo Nazario61.4%
Btier, win rate 50% or more
- Ronaldinho58.3%
- Zinedine Zidane58.0%
- Neymar Jr.56.6%
- Kylian Mbappe53.6%
- Johan Cruyff52.8%
- Paolo Maldini50.5%
Ctier, win rate 40% or more
- Robert Lewandowski48.0%
- Andres Iniesta47.9%
- Luka Modric47.0%
- Thierry Henry46.5%
- Franz Beckenbauer43.2%
- Sergio Ramos42.3%
- Erling Haaland40.4%
Dtier, win rate 25% or more
- Zlatan Ibrahimovic39.5%
- Xavi39.1%
- Kevin De Bruyne38.8%
- Alfredo Di Stefano36.5%
- David Beckham35.7%
- Jude Bellingham34.0%
- Virgil van Dijk33.9%
- Gerd Muller33.8%
- Toni Kroos33.0%
- Michel Platini30.5%
- Wayne Rooney29.6%
- Vinicius Jr.28.8%
- George Best25.4%
Ftier, win rate 0% or more
- Aitana Bonmati13.7%
Standings
Every entrant with its record. Ordered by win rate, steadied for small samples; a rate shows once an entrant has 30 matchups. n is the number of head-to-head matchups behind each rate.
| # | Contender | W–L | Win rate | Against .500 | Titles | n |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lionel MessiInter Miami / Barcelona / Argentina | 952–180 | 84.1% | 123 | 1,132 | |
| 2 | Cristiano RonaldoAl Nassr / Man Utd / Real Madrid / Portugal | 932–206 | 81.9% | 116 | 1,138 | |
| 3 | PeleSantos / Brazil | 680–296 | 69.7% | 39 | 976 | |
| 4 | Diego MaradonaNapoli / Barcelona / Argentina | 563–297 | 65.5% | 18 | 860 | |
| 5 | Ronaldo NazarioReal Madrid / Inter / Brazil | 459–288 | 61.4% | 9 | 747 | |
| 6 | RonaldinhoBarcelona / AC Milan / Brazil | 419–300 | 58.3% | 11 | 719 | |
| 7 | Zinedine ZidaneReal Madrid / Juventus / France | 390–282 | 58.0% | 9 | 672 | |
| 8 | Neymar Jr.Santos / Barcelona / PSG / Brazil | 405–311 | 56.6% | 11 | 716 | |
| 9 | Kylian MbappeReal Madrid / PSG / France | 332–287 | 53.6% | 8 | 619 | |
| 10 | Johan CruyffAjax / Barcelona / Netherlands | 369–330 | 52.8% | 3 | 699 | |
| 11 | Paolo MaldiniAC Milan / Italy | 331–325 | 50.5% | 6 | 656 | |
| 12 | Robert LewandowskiChicago Fire / Barcelona / Bayern / Poland | 289–313 | 48.0% | 4 | 602 | |
| 13 | Andres IniestaBarcelona / Spain | 265–288 | 47.9% | 3 | 553 | |
| 14 | Luka ModricAC Milan / Real Madrid / Croatia | 279–314 | 47.0% | 2 | 593 | |
| 15 | Thierry HenryArsenal / Barcelona / France | 246–283 | 46.5% | 4 | 529 | |
| 16 | Franz BeckenbauerBayern Munich / Germany | 264–347 | 43.2% | 5 | 611 | |
| 17 | Sergio RamosReal Madrid / Spain | 243–332 | 42.3% | 4 | 575 | |
| 18 | Erling HaalandMan City / Norway | 226–334 | 40.4% | 4 | 560 | |
| 19 | Zlatan IbrahimovicAC Milan / PSG / Sweden | 204–313 | 39.5% | 6 | 517 | |
| 20 | XaviBarcelona / Spain | 183–285 | 39.1% | 1 | 468 | |
| 21 | Kevin De BruyneNapoli / Man City / Belgium | 202–318 | 38.8% | 4 | 520 | |
| 22 | Alfredo Di StefanoReal Madrid / Argentina | 185–322 | 36.5% | 2 | 507 | |
| 23 | David BeckhamMan Utd / Real Madrid / England | 177–319 | 35.7% | 4 | 496 | |
| 24 | Jude BellinghamReal Madrid / England | 150–291 | 34.0% | 3 | 441 | |
| 25 | Virgil van DijkLiverpool / Netherlands | 163–318 | 33.9% | 0 | 481 | |
| 26 | Gerd MullerBayern Munich / Germany | 174–341 | 33.8% | 0 | 515 | |
| 27 | Toni KroosReal Madrid / Germany | 179–364 | 33.0% | 0 | 543 | |
| 28 | Michel PlatiniJuventus / France | 163–372 | 30.5% | 1 | 535 | |
| 29 | Wayne RooneyMan Utd / England | 135–321 | 29.6% | 2 | 456 | |
| 30 | Vinicius Jr.Real Madrid / Brazil | 130–322 | 28.8% | 1 | 452 | |
| 31 | George BestMan Utd / N. Ireland | 111–326 | 25.4% | 0 | 437 | |
| 32 | Aitana BonmatiBarcelona / Spain | 52–327 | 13.7% | 1 | 379 |
Closest rivalries
Pairs the crowd can barely split, from at least 20 real meetings each.
- Cristiano RonaldovsLionel Messi58–42 · 19–14 in 33 meetings
- Kevin De BruynevsGerd Muller15–9 in 24 meetings
- Cristiano RonaldovsPele70–30 · 35–15 in 50 meetings
Most lopsided
- PelevsGerd Muller23–0 in 23 meetings
- Lionel MessivsRobert Lewandowski97–3 · 29–1 in 30 meetings
- Cristiano RonaldovsRonaldinho23–2 in 25 meetings
Upsets and oddities
Patterns in 404 finished brackets.
- UntouchableLionel Messi wins 84.1%The best record in the field (n = 1,132 matchups).
- ClutchZlatan Ibrahimovic: 6 titlesOnly #19 on win rate, but #11 for championships.
- Still waitingVirgil van Dijk: no titles yetWins 33.9% of its matchups (n = 481) and has never been crowned.
Questions people ask
What is #1 in the Soccer Players community ranking?
Lionel Messi. It wins 84.1% of its head-to-head matchups (n = 1,132) and took the title in 123 of 404 finished brackets.
How is the ranking worked out?
Every pick in a finished bracket is a win for one entrant and a loss for the other. Entrants are ordered by win rate, steadied toward 50% by ten imaginary matchups so that a newcomer with a 3–0 record can't top the table. The rate shown is the real one, with n, the number of matchups behind it.
Why win rate and not titles?
Draws are shuffled, so a title can come from an easy path. Win rate counts every matchup an entrant played, which is a fairer read of how people feel about it. Title odds are shown too, as the share of finished brackets each entrant won.
How many people have ranked Soccer Players?
404 finished brackets so far, with 9,852 head-to-head picks between them. Only finished brackets count.
Can I rank all 32 myself?
Yes. Play the bracket at 8, 16, 32 entrants, free and with no sign-up. You get your own ranking and a link to share, and your picks join this page.
How often does this page update?
About every hour, as new brackets are finished.
More brackets
Your turn: is the crowd right?
Pick a winner in every matchup and see where you agree with 404 players, and where you don't.