GGOATRANK

GOAT Rank · 166

Greatest Football Players who debuted in the 2000s

This ranking is led by Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Marta Vieira da Silva. GOAT Rank currently ranks 166 eligible Football players who debuted in the 2000s using verified career records across dominance, peak, longevity, honours and statistics.

Quick answer

According to GOAT Rank's current model, Lionel Messi ranks #1 on this list with a GOAT Score of 97.0.

How the GOAT Score is calculated →
#AthleteGOAT Score
Sport
Football
Career
2005–2023
Country
🇮🇹 Italy
Peak
86.0
Dominance
78.0
Statistics
84.0
Honours
80.0
Longevity
86.0
Athlete: Alia Guagni
Sport
Football
Career
2009–2019
Country
🇩🇪 Germany
Peak
86.0
Dominance
78.0
Statistics
82.0
Honours
88.0
Longevity
78.0
Athlete: Tabea Kemme
Sport
Football
Career
2008–active
Country
🇦🇺 Australia
Peak
88.0
Dominance
82.0
Statistics
88.0
Honours
76.0
Longevity
78.0
Athlete: Sam Kerr
Sport
Football
Career
2006–2024
Country
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England
Peak
84.0
Dominance
78.0
Statistics
78.0
Honours
82.0
Longevity
86.0
Athlete: Steph Houghton
Sport
Football
Career
2002–2020
Country
🇧🇷 Brazil
Peak
85.0
Dominance
82.0
Statistics
78.0
Honours
80.0
Longevity
82.0
Athlete: Robinho
Sport
Football
Career
2007–2023
Country
🇧🇪 Belgium
Peak
88.0
Dominance
80.0
Statistics
82.0
Honours
78.0
Longevity
74.0
Athlete: Eden Hazard

Compare the leaders

Lionel Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo

Read the full methodology

Sport lists use the raw In-Sport GOAT Score. Cross-sport lists use the official competition-depth adjustment. No scores are recalculated for this page.

Read the full methodology

Frequently asked questions

How is this ranking calculated?

Five verified components are weighted consistently: dominance, peak, longevity, honours and statistics.

Who is included?

According to GOAT Rank's current data model, only verified athletes with sufficient career history, metrics, honours and independent sources are eligible. Rank and score are read live.

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