Cristiano Ronaldo can reach 1000 goals BEFORE the 2026 World Cup & here’s how
Cristiano Ronaldo has made it his personal mission to score 1000 goals before he retires, but could he reach the milestone before the 2026 World Cup? We’ve crunched the numbers.
As of writing, CR7 has scored 948 goals, meaning that he’s 52 strikes away from reaching the landmark tally.
No player in the history of football has scored 1000 goals in competitive matches, meaning Ronaldo could become the first player in history to achieve the feat.
“People, especially my family, say: ‘It’s time for you to stop. You’ve done everything. Why do you want to score a thousand goals?” Ronaldo told Canal 11.
“But I don’t think so. I think I’m still producing good things, I’m helping my club and the national team, and why not keep going?
“I’m sure that when I finish, I’ll be fulfilled, because I gave it my all. I know I don’t have many more years, but the few I have, I try to enjoy to the fullest.”
In order to figure out whether or not Ronaldo will be able to reach 1000 goals before the World Cup, we need to estimate how many games he will realistically play between now and then.
For Al-Nassr, he can play a maximum of 30 more league games, four games in the King’s Cup and 11 games in the AFC Champions League Two.
Therefore, he has a maximum of 45 games left at club level before the World Cup. Of course, that’s providing that he remains injury-free and Al-Nassr reach the final in their two remaining cup competitions.
Between now and the next World Cup, Portugal will likely have six more games in the remaining three international breaks.
In total, that means Ronaldo will play a maximum of 51 games before the World Cup, in which he needs to score 52 goals.
By that logic, it does seem feasible that he will be able to reach the 1000 goal landmark before next summer.
Since January 2023, Ronaldo has averaged a goal every 98.5 minutes for club and country, having scored 129 goals in 146 matches.
If he intends to score his 1000th goal before the World Cup next year, he’ll need to average a strike every 88.3 minutes.
For a player like Ronaldo playing in Saudi Arabia, that is possible, but it will take one hell of an effort.
The biggest hurdle that could scupper Ronaldo is being injured or rested for a sizeable number of matches.
Even if he spends just a couple of weeks on the sidelines, his chances of reaching 1000 goals before the World Cup reduce significantly.
For example, if he only plays 40 more matches between now and the summer, he’ll need to average a goal every 69.2 minutes in order to reach 1000 goals before the season ends.
In all likelihood, he will be just shy of 1000 goals going to the World Cup next year, meaning that there’s a decent chance his 1000th strike could come at the tournament itself. Watch this space.
READ NEXT: Will Erling Haaland reach 1000 goals in fewer matches than Cristiano Ronaldo?
TRY A QUIZ: Guess The Wikipedia Footballer #17: Can you name Cristiano Ronaldo’s team-mates?