Football trophies are very hard to win, and many elite players retire without ever holding a piece of elusive silverware.
The most celebrated players’ careers are so remarkable because of this. And we’ll be honoring the celebrities whose homes are crammed with medals and honors in this piece. Prior to revealing the unique person who holds the record for most soccer trophies ever, we will go over the top ten players with the most trophies.
Lionel Messi (45 trophies)
Lionel Messi is a national hero in Argentina, where his heroics in the 2022 World Cup and 2021 Copa America guaranteed that his name would be remembered as an equal to the late great Diego Maradona. He is completely unequaled now that the 2024 Copa America has been added to the list.
But these victories with his national team have also helped propel him closer to the top of the list of players with the most trophies in soccer history. In August, he jumped to the top of the list with a historic Leagues Cup victory with Inter Miami. With an incredible 45 trophies in his glittering career, Lionel Messi has won almost everything that can be won.
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Dani Alves (43 trophies)
There has been a slight increase in the number of players who have won the most awards in soccer history. Dani Alves, a Brazilian full-back who was the joint most decorated player in soccer history until recently, comes in second.
La Liga victories with Barcelona, two UEFA Cups with Sevilla, two Copa Americas with Brazil, and several cups and crowns with Parisian powerhouse PSG in the later years of his playing career are among his 43 accomplishments.
Alves’ career has been clouded by a black cloud in the past year, though, as he was charged with sexual assault in August 2023 and is presently awaiting a possible 15-year prison sentence.
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Hossam Ashour (39 trophies)
The legendary Egyptian defensive midfielder Hossam Ashour, who has amassed an absurd number of trophies over the course of 17 years as the center of the midfield for Egyptian powerhouse Al-Ahly, is arguably the least well-known name on this list among European football fans.
Ashour has won 13 league titles overall, four Egypt Cups, and ten Egypt Super Cups as a result of Al-Ahly’s recent domination over their domestic division. Ashour has won six African Champions League titles and six African Super Cups, bringing his total number of trophies at the club to an incredible 39. His feats on the African continent, however, are equally outstanding.
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Maxwell (37 trophies)
Following them is a player who, although not having the same standing in the European game as players like Pique or Iniesta, has won just as many titles as them, many of them with the Barcelona squad.
Maxwell, who moved to Europe from his native Brazil in 2001, played a key part in two Eredivisie title wins with Ajax before joining Inter and winning Serie A three times. He had already won numerous titles at other teams before he joined the Catalan team in 2008.
After that, he had an incredible few seasons in La Liga before moving to France and winning four Ligue 1 championships with PSG.
When compared to players like Iniesta or Messi, the 37 trophies is an extremely outstanding total that frequently goes unnoticed.
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Andres Iniesta (37 trophies)
Since the teams of Pep Guardiola, Luis Enrique, and Ernesto Valverde were very successful during this time and were instrumental in the development of possession football and the so-called tiki taka playing philosophy, it should come as no surprise that this list is saturated with Barca players from the 2000s and 2010s.
Andres Iniesta was the mainstay of Barcelona’s midfield from 2002 to 2018, playing a staggering 674 games overall. Iniesta, a brilliant passer with amazing movement, an unquenchable creative spark, and a flare for flashes of brilliance (exemplified by his creation of the La Croqueta skill), was the lifeblood of several legendary Barcelona teams.
Gerard Pique (37 trophies)
Busquets led the midfield, but Gerard Pique, who is always there, provided him with vital defensive cover for both Barcelona and Spain. During his illustrious playing career, the towering center-back won 37 trophies, including eight La Ligas, four Champions League titles, a World Cup, and a Premier League championship during his brief stint with Manchester United.
As one of the most important members of the renowned Barcelona teams of the late 2000s and early 2010s, Pique will go down in history.
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Sergio Busquets (36 trophies)
Alongside Lionel Messi at Inter Miami in his later years, Sergio Busquets ended an incredible playing stint at La Liga powerhouse Barcelona over the summer. After 15 years as a mainstay in the Barca first team, Busquets won 36 titles, making him one of the most successful players in Spain’s top division’s history.
La Liga wins, Copa Del Reys, and three Champions League triumphs are all part of this incredible total. Significantly, Busquets also enjoyed great success with the Spanish national team, contributing to their victories in the 2010 World Cup and the 2012 European Championship.
Ryan Giggs (36 trophies)
Ryan Giggs, who has the eighth-most assists in soccer history and the most assists in the Premier League overall, was a sensation for Manchester United in the 1990s and 2000s. He established himself as a mainstay in the Premier League and gained a reputation for making precise passes and searching crosses. Additionally, he is third all-time in Premier League appearances.
During the most prosperous phase in the Red Devils’ history, Giggs won a record 13 Premier League championships, two UEFA Champions Leagues, and numerous FA Cup and League Cups. It is even more noteworthy that he is on this list given that his country, Wales, wasn’t even making it to big tournaments at the time, much less winning them.
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Cristiano Ronaldo (35 trophies)
Since making his debut with Lisbon’s dominant Sporting CP in 2002, Cristiano Ronaldo has undergone an incredible transformation as a footballer. After establishing himself as a cunning winger in Portugal, CR7 relocated to United and made great progress in his game, emerging as a key member of Fergie’s wildly successful sides in the mid-to-late 2000s.
Ronaldo, on the other hand, developed into a goal-scoring machine at Real Madrid, a physically strong central forward with deadly finishing abilities. He is ahead of his competitor as the all-time greatest scorer in the Champions League, although he is ranked second in La Liga’s all-time top scorers list, only surpassed by Lionel Messi. In the UEFA European Championships, he is also the all-time leading scorer.
Kenny Dalglish (35 trophies)
As manager of Blackburn Rovers in the 1994–95 season, Kenny Dalglish made history by leading the team to their first Premier League title in a decade dominated by Sir Alex Ferguson’s dominant Manchester United team, which included players like Eric Cantona, Roy Keane, and Ryan Giggs (more on him soon).
The Scotsman’s playing career, however, is what made him famous, and his impressive trophy collection from his time at Celtic and Liverpool was impressive. Dalglish’s total trophy haul included one FA Cup, six First Division crowns, and—possibly most impressively—three European Cups in 1977–78, 1980–81, and 1983–84.
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Conclusion
Although they have had a significant impact on the game, many extremely skilled and influential football players have not yet earned enough titles to be included in this top ten list.