Cristiano Ronaldo, currently tied for second in the 2024-25 Nations League scoring chart with seven goals, continues to make history.
His recent game-winning goal against Germany marked a significant milestone in his illustrious career.
The victory in the Nations League semi-final in Munich not only added to his already impressive goal tally but also broke a longstanding personal record.
The 40-year-old’s strike was his 137th international goal in 220 appearances, adding to his overall career total of 937 goals—all men’s records.
Until this match, Ronaldo had a surprising blemish on his otherwise impeccable international record: a winless streak against Germany, spanning five matches.
Portugal’s last victory against Germany came at Euro 2000. This win improves his record to one victory in six matches against Germany.
This surpasses England as the nation he’s faced most without a win; he drew all three matches against England, though two of those were penalty shootout losses (Euro 2004 and 2006 World Cup quarterfinals).
France holds the record for most losses against Ronaldo’s Portugal, with four defeats. However, Portugal notably triumphed over France in the Euro 2016 final, and they also have three draws, including one penalty shootout defeat.
His goal against Germany was also remarkable. Previously, he’d only scored one goal in 450 minutes against them. Now, he has two in 540 minutes – averaging a goal every 270 minutes.
Interestingly, his Champions League record against German clubs is far more impressive: 28 goals in 26 games.
Since turning 30, Ronaldo has scored 85 goals for Portugal, a feat surpassed by only five other players in history.
This means his post-30 international goal tally surpasses the career totals of legends like Ferenc Puskas, Pele, Diego Maradona, Gerd Muller, and current stars Neymar and Harry Kane.
“It’s difficult to put into words. He takes each day as an opportunity to get better,” said Portugal manager Roberto Martinez.
“As a human, when you have success, you wake up and you have less hunger. But not Cristiano.”
Team-mate Bernardo Silva added: “It’s his ambition to keep going. It’s never easy—to still be hungry to go every day. He’s been doing this for more than 20 years. It’s tough, but he’s here with us and we’re happy he scored again.”
Following the Nations League final against either France or Spain (who play on Thursday), Ronaldo’s club future remains uncertain.
After his contract with Al-Nassr expired, he hinted at a departure on social media. However, reports now suggest he’s likely to sign a new contract extending his stay until he’s 42.
Ronaldo needs 63 more goals to become the first player to reach 1,000 officially recognized goals.
While Pele and Romario claimed to have surpassed 1,000, their totals included unofficial matches, making their claims unverifiable.
Given his 35 goals for Al-Nassr last season, he could reach the milestone in under two years if he maintains that scoring rate.
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