Messi's 900 goals and his magic moments that made history
- Published
Lionel Messi has reached a number few men's footballers have ever achieved: 900 career goals for club and country.
He hit the landmark with a low, left‑footed finish just seven minutes into his team, Inter Miami's game against Nashville.
Only Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo had got there before him.
Below are four big milestones that explain how Messi became one of the greatest goal‑scorers of all time.
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Messi's first senior club goal came in 2005
Messi's first senior goal came for Barcelona on 1 May 2005 against Albacete.
He was 17 years, 10 months and 7 days old and, at the time, became Barcelona's youngest league goal‑scorer.
He chipped the goalkeeper after a pass from Ronaldinho and celebrated on the Brazilian star's shoulders - an early hint of the magic to come.
He stayed at Barcelona for 17 seasons and set club records with 672 goals in 778 matches.
Goals galore!
In 2012, Messi scored 91 goals in one calendar year (79 for Barcelona and 12 for Argentina). That's a recognised world record by Guinness World Records.
All those 91 goals came in 69 games, meaning he scored more than once per match on average. Incredible!
Messi the world champion
History made as Messi hits 900 goals
At the Fifa World Cup in Qatar, Messi captained Argentina to a dramatic win over France in the final. The game finished 3–3 after extra time, and Argentina won the penalty shoot‑out 4–2.
Messi scored twice in the match before lifting the famous gold trophy his country's third men's World Cup title.
Goal number 900 for Messi
Fast‑forward to present day and Messi's early strike for Inter Miami took him to 900 career goals - a total reached only by Ronaldo before him.
Legendary footballer, Pelé claimed he scored over 1,000 goals and Guinness World Records lists him with 1,283 when friendlies are included, but independent statisticians count only 778 goals in official matches.
Messi on stage with his son as he receives his eight Ballon d'Or award
Messi's career goals have been spread across Barcelona (where he scored the most), Paris Saint‑Germain (32 in 75), Inter Miami (81 in 93) and the Argentina national team (115 international goals, the most in his country's history).
Reaching 900 isn't just a big number - it shows amazing consistency over more than 20 years. Ronaldo got to 900 first in September 2024, and his current tally is reported around 965; Messi has now joined him in that rare "900 club".
On top of that, Messi has a record eight Ballon d'Or awards, football's most famous individual prize.
