List of UEFA Champions League top scorers

Cristiano Ronaldo is the competition's all-time top scorer with 140 goals

The UEFA Champions League , known until 1992 as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or colloquially as the European Cup, is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1955. Originally a straight knockout competition open only to champion clubs, the tournament was expanded during the 1990s to incorporate a round-robin group phase and more teams. The expansion resulted in more games being played, increasing players' goalscoring chances; thus the rankings are weighted in favour of modern players: only seven out of the 52 players on the list never competed in the reformed Champions League.

With 140 goals, Cristiano Ronaldo is currently the all-time top scorer in the Champions League, while his career rival Lionel Messi is the only other player to have reached triple figures. Ronaldo has also finished as the top scorer for the most individual seasons in the competition's history, doing so seven times.

The title of highest goalscorer had previously been held by Raúl, who scored his 50th goal in 2005 while at Real Madrid to overtake Alfredo Di Stéfano. ^[1] He held the record until November 2014, ^{[2] [3]} when his eventual tally of 71 was first equalled and then surpassed by Messi. ^{[4] [5]} Ronaldo has remained the competition's outright top scorer since September 2015; after a back-and-forth exchange of the record between him and Messi, a hat-trick by the former against Shakhtar Donetsk put Ronaldo ahead with 80 goals, and he would not relinquish the top spot again after this. ^[6]

All-time top scorers

As of 10 April 2024 ^{[7] [8]}

A ‡ indicates the player was from the European Cup era.

Players taking part in the 2023–24 UEFA Champions League are highlighted in boldface.

The table below does not include goals scored in the qualification stage of the competition. Notwithstanding, UEFA's official goalscoring ranking counts Cristiano Ronaldo's tally at 141 goals. ^[9]

Rank	Player	Goals	Apps	Ratio	Years	Club(s) (Goals/Apps)
1	Cristiano Ronaldo	140	183	0.77	2003–2022	Manchester United (21/59), Real Madrid (105/101), Juventus (14/23)
2	Lionel Messi	129	163	0.79	2005–2023	Barcelona (120/149), Paris Saint-Germain (9/14)
3	Robert Lewandowski	94	119	0.79	2011–	Borussia Dortmund (17/28), Bayern Munich (69/78), Barcelona (8/13)
4	Karim Benzema	90	152	0.59	2005–2023	Lyon (12/19), Real Madrid (78/133)
5	Raúl	71	142	0.50	1995–2011	Real Madrid (66/130), Schalke 04 (5/12)
6	Ruud van Nistelrooy	56	73	0.77	1998–2009	PSV Eindhoven (8/11), Manchester United (35/43), Real Madrid (13/19)
7	Thomas Müller	54	149	0.36	2009–	Bayern Munich
8	Thierry Henry	50	112	0.45	1997–2012	Monaco (7/9), Arsenal (35/77), Barcelona (8/26)
9	Alfredo Di Stéfano ‡	49	58	0.84	1955–1964	Real Madrid
10	Andriy Shevchenko	48	100	0.48	1994–2012	Dynamo Kyiv (15/26), Milan (29/59), Chelsea (4/15)
	Zlatan Ibrahimović	48	124	0.39	2001–2021	Ajax (6/19), Juventus (3/19), Inter Milan (6/22), Barcelona (4/10), Milan (9/20), Paris Saint-Germain (20/33), Manchester United (0/1)

Top scorers by season

The table below does not include goals scored in the qualification stage of the competition. ^[10]

Season	Player(s)	Club(s)	Goals
1955–56	Miloš Milutinović	Partizan	8
1956–57	Dennis Viollet	Manchester United	9
1957–58	Alfredo Di Stéfano	Real Madrid	10
1958–59	Just Fontaine	Reims	10
1959–60	Ferenc Puskás	Real Madrid	12
1960–61	José Águas	Benfica	11
1961–62	Heinz Strehl	1. FC Nürnberg	8
	Alfredo Di Stéfano	Real Madrid
	Justo Tejada	Real Madrid
	Ferenc Puskás	Real Madrid
1962–63	José Altafini	Milan	14
1963–64	Vladica Kovačević	Partizan	7
	Sandro Mazzola	Inter Milan
	Ferenc Puskás	Real Madrid
1964–65	Eusébio	Benfica	9
	José Torres	Benfica
1965–66	Flórián Albert	Ferencváros	7
	Eusébio	Benfica
1966–67	Jürgen Piepenburg	Vorwärts Berlin	6
	Paul Van Himst	Anderlecht
1967–68	Eusébio	Benfica	6
1968–69	Denis Law	Manchester United	9
1969–70	Mick Jones	Leeds United	8
1970–71	Antonis Antoniadis	Panathinaikos	10
1971–72	Johan Cruyff	Ajax	5
	Antal Dunai	Újpest
	Lou Macari	Celtic
	Silvester Takač	Standard Liège
1972–73	Gerd Müller	Bayern Munich	11
1973–74	Gerd Müller	Bayern Munich	8
1974–75	Gerd Müller	Bayern Munich	5
	Eduard Markarov	Ararat Yerevan
1975–76	Jupp Heynckes	Borussia Mönchengladbach	6
1976–77	Gerd Müller	Bayern Munich	5
	Franco Cucinotta	Zürich
1977–78	Allan Simonsen	Borussia Mönchengladbach	5
1978–79	Claudio Sulser	Grasshopper	11
1979–80	Søren Lerby	Ajax	10
1980–81	Terry McDermott	Liverpool	6
	Graeme Souness	Liverpool
	Karl-Heinz Rummenigge	Bayern Munich
1981–82	Dieter Hoeneß	Bayern Munich	7
1982–83	Paolo Rossi	Juventus	6
1983–84	Viktor Sokol	Dinamo Minsk	6
1984–85	Torbjörn Nilsson	IFK Göteborg	7
	Michel Platini	Juventus
1985–86	Torbjörn Nilsson	IFK Göteborg	6
1986–87	Borislav Cvetković	Red Star Belgrade	7
1987–88	Gheorghe Hagi	Steaua București	4
	Petar Novák	Sparta Prague
	René van der Gijp	Neuchâtel Xamax
	Rabah Madjer	Porto
	Ally McCoist	Rangers
	Míchel	Real Madrid
	Rui Águas	Benfica
1988–89	Marco van Basten	Milan	10
1989–90	Romário	PSV Eindhoven	6
	Jean-Pierre Papin	Marseille
1990–91	Peter Pacult	Tirol Innsbruck	6
	Jean-Pierre Papin	Marseille
1991–92	Sergei Yuran	Benfica	7
	Jean-Pierre Papin	Marseille
1992–93	Romário	PSV Eindhoven	7
1993–94	Ronald Koeman	Barcelona	8
	Wynton Rufer	Werder Bremen
1994–95	George Weah	Paris Saint-Germain	7
1995–96	Jari Litmanen	Ajax	9
1996–97	Milinko Pantić	Atlético Madrid	5
1997–98	Alessandro Del Piero	Juventus	10
1998–99	Andriy Shevchenko	Dynamo Kyiv	8
	Dwight Yorke	Manchester United
1999–2000	Mário Jardel	Porto	10
	Rivaldo	Barcelona
	Raúl	Real Madrid
2000–01	Raúl	Real Madrid	7
2001–02	Ruud van Nistelrooy	Manchester United	10
2002–03	Ruud van Nistelrooy	Manchester United	12
2003–04	Fernando Morientes	Monaco	9
2004–05	Ruud van Nistelrooy	Manchester United	8
2005–06	Andriy Shevchenko	Milan	9
2006–07	Kaká	Milan	10
2007–08	Cristiano Ronaldo	Manchester United	8
2008–09	Lionel Messi	Barcelona	9
2009–10	Lionel Messi	Barcelona	8
2010–11	Lionel Messi	Barcelona	12
2011–12	Lionel Messi	Barcelona	14
2012–13	Cristiano Ronaldo	Real Madrid	12
2013–14	Cristiano Ronaldo	Real Madrid	17
2014–15	Neymar	Barcelona	10
	Cristiano Ronaldo	Real Madrid
	Lionel Messi	Barcelona
2015–16	Cristiano Ronaldo	Real Madrid	16
2016–17	Cristiano Ronaldo	Real Madrid	12
2017–18	Cristiano Ronaldo	Real Madrid	15
2018–19	Lionel Messi	Barcelona	12
2019–20	Robert Lewandowski	Bayern Munich	15
2020–21	Erling Haaland	Borussia Dortmund	10
2021–22	Karim Benzema	Real Madrid	15
2022–23	Erling Haaland	Manchester City	12

By player

Player	Titles	Seasons
Cristiano Ronaldo	7	2007–08, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18
Lionel Messi	6	2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2014–15, 2018–19
Gerd Müller	4	1972–73, 1973–74, 1974–75, 1976–77
Ferenc Puskás	3	1959–60, 1961–62, 1963–64
Eusébio		1964–65, 1965–66, 1967–68
Jean-Pierre Papin		1989–90, 1990–91, 1991–92
Ruud van Nistelrooy		2001–02, 2002–03, 2004–05
Alfredo Di Stéfano	2	1957–58, 1961–62
Torbjörn Nilsson		1984–85, 1985–86
Romário		1989–90, 1992–93
Raúl		1999–2000, 2000–01
Andriy Shevchenko		1998–99, 2005–06
Erling Haaland		2020–21, 2022–23

By club

Club	Titles	Seasons
Real Madrid	16	1957–58, 1959–60, 1961–62 (3 [lower-alpha 1] ), 1963–64, 1987–88, 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2021–22
Barcelona	9	1993–94, 1999–2000, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2014–15 (2 [lower-alpha 2] ), 2018–19
Benfica	7	1960–61, 1964–65 (2 [lower-alpha 3] ), 1965–66, 1967–68, 1987–88, 1991–92
Manchester United		1956–57, 1968–69, 1998–99, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2004–05, 2007–08
Bayern Munich		1972–73, 1973–74, 1974–75, 1976–77, 1980–81, 1981–82, 2019–20
Milan	4	1962–63, 1988–89, 2005–06, 2006–07
Marseille	3	1989–90, 1990–91, 1991–92
Ajax		1971–72, 1979–80, 1995–96
Juventus		1982–83, 1984–85, 1997–98
Partizan	2	1955–56, 1963–64
Borussia Mönchengladbach		1975–76, 1977–78
Liverpool		1980–81 (2 [lower-alpha 4] )
IFK Göteborg		1984–85, 1985–86
PSV Eindhoven		1989–90, 1992–93
Porto		1987–88, 1999–2000
Reims	1	1958–59
1. FC Nürnberg		1961–62
Inter Milan		1963–64
Ferencváros		1965–66
Anderlecht		1966–67
Vorwärts Berlin		1966–67
Leeds United		1969–70
Panathinaikos		1970–71
Celtic		1971–72
Standard Liège		1971–72
Újpest		1971–72
Ararat Yerevan		1974–75
Zürich		1976–77
Grasshopper		1978–79
Dinamo Minsk		1983–84
Red Star Belgrade		1986–87
Neuchâtel Xamax		1987–88
Sparta Prague		1987–88
Steaua București		1987–88
Rangers		1987–88
Tirol Innsbruck		1990–91
Werder Bremen		1993–94
Paris Saint-Germain		1994–95
Atlético Madrid		1996–97
Dynamo Kyiv		1998–99
Monaco		2003–04
Borussia Dortmund		2020–21
Manchester City		2022–23

Notes

1. Three Real Madrid players were joint top scorers in this season.
2. Two Barcelona players were joint top scorers in this season.
3. Two Benfica players were joint top scorers in this season.
4. Two Liverpool players were joint top scorers in this season.

By country

Country	Titles	Seasons
Portugal	13	1960–61, 1964–65 (2 [lower-alpha 1] ),1965–66, 1967–68, 1987–88, 2007–08, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18
West Germany	8	1961–62, 1972–73, 1973–74, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1976–77, 1980–81, 1981–82
Argentina		1957–58, 1961–62, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2014–15, 2018–19
Netherlands	7	1971–72, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1993–94, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2004–05
France	6	1958–59, 1984–85, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1991–92, 2021–22
Brazil		1989–90, 1992–93, 1999–2000 (2 [lower-alpha 2] ), 2006–07, 2014–15
Yugoslavia	5	1955–56, 1963–64, 1971–72, 1986–87, 1996–97
Italy		1962–63, 1963–64, 1976–77, 1982–83, 1997–98
Hungary		1959–60, 1961–62, 1963–64, 1965–66, 1971–72
Spain		1961–62, 1987–88, 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2003–04
Scotland	4	1968–69, 1971–72, 1980–81, 1987–88
England	3	1956–57, 1969–70, 1980–81
Ukraine		1991–92, 1998–99, 2005–06
Soviet Union	2	1974–75, 1983–84
Denmark		1977–78, 1979–80
Sweden		1984–85, 1985–86
Norway		2020–21, 2022–23
Belgium	1	1966–67
Greece		1970–71
Switzerland		1978–79
Algeria		1987–88
Czechoslovakia		1987–88
Romania		1987–88
Austria		1990–91
New Zealand		1993–94
Liberia		1994–95
Finland		1995–96
Trinidad and Tobago		1998–99
Poland		2019–20

Notes

1. Two Portuguese players were joint top scorers in this season.
2. Two Brazilian players were joint top scorers in this season.

See also

• List of footballers with 100 or more UEFA Champions League appearances
• List of UEFA Champions League hat-tricks
• List of UEFA Cup and Europa League top scorers
• List of UEFA Cup Winners' Cup top scorers

References

1. "Raúl ya es el máximo goleador de la Copa de Europa" [Raúl is now the top scorer of the European Cup]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Madrid, Spain. 28 September 2005. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
2. Hunter, Graham (30 May 2014). "Look out, Messi, Ronaldo is the real record breaker". ESPN . Retrieved 25 October 2023.
3. Bate, Adam (2 November 2014). "Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are closing in on Raul's UEFA Champions League goalscoring record of 71". Sky Sports . Retrieved 25 October 2023.
4. Arnett, George; Sedghi, Ami (7 November 2014). "Champions League goalscoring record: charting Messi, Ronaldo and Raúl". The Guardian . Retrieved 25 October 2023.
5. "Messi breaks Champions League record". BBC Sport . 25 November 2014. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
6. "Ronaldo reaches 80 goals as Madrid fell Shakhtar". UEFA . 15 September 2015. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
7. "Champions League all-time top scorers". UEFA . 29 November 2023. Archived from the original on 10 August 2020. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
8. "Champions League + European Cup – All-time Topscorers". WorldFootball.net. Archived from the original on 10 August 2020. Retrieved 3 October 2023.
9. "All-time Player | Top goalscorers Stats | UEFA Champions League". UEFA.com.
10. For players active prior to the introduction of the Champions League in 1992, see: Di Maggio, Roberto; Mamrud, Roberto; Rota, Davide; Owsianski, Jarek (8 June 2017). "Champions Cup/Champions League Topscorers". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation (RSSSF). Retrieved 2 November 2017. For all other players, see: "UEFA Champions League Statistics Handbook 2017/18: Facts and figures" (PDF). UEFA. p. 11. Retrieved 2 November 2017.