15 Most Decorated Players in Football History Ranked by Trophies Won

Every football player dreams of lifting as much silverware as they can possibly get their hands on. Some of the best players to have played the beautiful game have extremely bare-looking trophy cabinets, proving how difficult it is to win any honour in the sport.

Players such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have made it look easy for many years, as the duo have led their respective teams to an unbelievable number of trophies over their long and storied careers. Then there are mercenaries like Zlatan Ibrahimovic who – while also brilliant players in their own right – move around the most historically successful clubs in the world to collect silverware at will.

This article now looks at the most successful players in football history, based on the number of trophies they have amassed throughout their playing careers. There’s even a chance for a couple of these players to add further to their already sensational hauls.

The 15 Players with the Most Trophies in Football History

Rank
Player
Number of Trophies

1.
Lionel Messi
45

2.
Dani Alves
43

3.
Hossam Ashour
39

4.
Andres Iniesta
37

5.
Gerard Pique
37

6.
Sergio Busquets
36

7.
David Alaba
36

8.
Kenny Dalglish
35

9.
Ryan Giggs
35

10.
Cristiano Ronaldo
35

11.
Toni Kroos
34

12.
Karim Benzema
33

13.
Xavi
33

14.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
32

15.
Luka Modric
32

1Lionel Messi

45 trophies

Messi is the greatest footballer of all-time in the eyes of many, and he’s also now the (joint) most decorated player ever. The Argentine won an incredible 34 trophies during his time at Barcelona, before going on to win three more at Paris Saint-Germain. It looked as if Messi would end his career having never won the World Cup, but his dreams finally came true in 2022 when he was instrumental in La Albiceleste’s triumph in Qatar.

It took Messi just one month to add to his remarkable silverware tally with Inter Miami after joining the MLS club in 2023. After scoring a hugely impressive 10 goals in his first seven appearances for the Florida-based outfit, Messi got his hands on the Leagues Cup. This was Inter Miami’s first-ever trophy – a huge moment for Messi, Beckham, and everyone else associated with the Major League Soccer club. The most recent triumph in the iconic figure’s glistening career came as Argentina lifted the 2024 Copa America trophy.

Lionel Messi – Career Trophies

Trophy
Number of wins (Years won)

La Liga
10x (2004–05, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2012–13, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2017–18, 2018–19)

Copa del Rey
7x (2008–09, 2011–12, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2020–21)

Supercopa de Espana
8x (2005-06, 2006-07, 2009-10, 2010-11, 2011-12, 2013-14, 2016-17, 2018-19)

Champions League
4x (2005–06, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2014–15)

UEFA Super Cup
3x (2009, 2011, 2015)

FIFA Club World Cup
3x (2009, 2011, 2015)

Ligue 1
2x (2021–22, 2022–23)

Trophee des Champions
1x (2022)

Leagues Cup
1x (2023)

Copa America
2x (2021, 2024)

World Cup
1x (2022)

FIFA World Youth Championship
1x (2005)

Olympic Gold Medal
1x (2008)

CONMEBOL-UEFA Cup of Champions
1x (2022)