Lionel Messi scored his 900th career goal on Wednesday to become the second player to reach the goal in elite men’s soccer after Cristiano Ronaldo.
The 38-year-old Argentine World Cup winner brought up the milestone with a left-footed strike in Inter Miami’s 1-1 draw with Nashville SC in the Concacaf Champions Cup.
The 900th goal came 21 years after Messi scored his first in senior football for Barcelona as a 17-year-old in 2005.
Inter manager Javier Mascherano said Messi’s tally was “insane”.
“I’ve been lucky enough to see most or many of the goals he’s scored much closer than all of you and that’s a privilege,” he added.
“The number we’re talking about is insane, and that’s why Leo is one of a kind.”
Messi, who has won the Ballon d’Or eight times, reached the milestone in his 1,142. appearances for club and country, almost 100 games less than Ronaldo, who took 1,236 games to reach the milestone in September 2024.
Portuguese forward Ronaldo has now reached 965 goals and is targeting the 1,000 mark before he retires from the game.
Most of Messi’s goals came during his time at Barcelona, where he scored 672 times. He added 32 at Paris St-Germain and 81 for Inter Miami and scored 115 for Argentina, with whom he won the 2022 World Cup.
Messi’s teammates have been able to rely on him at crucial times with 175 of his goals coming in knockout games, including 35 in finals.
His 129 goals in Europe’s Champions League is second only to Ronaldo’s 140.
Messi’s milestone goal came on a bittersweet night for Miami, who exited the competition away from home after the first leg of their tie ended 0-0.
