Two adjacent transparent bins in London became the venue for a silent but heated debate in 2015, with smokers depositing their stubbed-out butts to settle a burning question: who was the best soccer player in the world, Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo?
As a way to encourage people to use bins for their butts, the biggest career rivalry in 21st -century soccer proved to be an effective conduit.
A decade on, however, the debate still rages as the duo head towards becoming the first men to appear in six World Cups.
Ronaldo and Messi have each scored more than 800 goals for club and country, winning nine Champions Leagues and 13 Ballon d’Or trophies between them.
Messi’s fans argue that his World Cup triumph for Argentina in 2022 puts him top of the pile but Ronaldo-worshipers cite his titles across Europe’s major leagues, a tally of 954 goals, including 143 for his country, and being the most-capped male international footballer with 226 appearances for Portugal.
Next year’s tournament in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, when Ronaldo will be 41 and Messi turns 39, will surely be their last.
Ronaldo was 21 and Messi almost 19 when they became their countries’ youngest World Cup goalscorers when they debuted in the tournament in Germany.
Messi did not play in the quarter-finals, where Argentina were beaten by the hosts on penalties. The next day, Ronaldo scored the decisive penalty in a shootout with England, before facing heartbreak in the semi-finals, where Portugal lost to France.
WORLD CUP 2010: Ronaldo, the Portugal captain, scored only one goal in South Africa before Portugal lost to champions Spain in the last 16.
Messi, who failed to score in the tournament as Argentina were ousted by Germany for the second straight time, faced heavy criticism back home, with fans accusing him of caring less about his country than his club Barcelona.
WORLD CUP 2014: Portugal had a forgettable campaign as Ronaldo, who was risking his career playing with a knee injury, scored only once as they were eliminated in the group stage.
Messi, now his country’s captain, came into his own, however, scoring in every group game and winning four straight player-of-the-match awards.
Argentina, however, lost the final to Germany. A tearful Messi’s Golden Ball trophy was no consolation.
In the next two years, Argentina lost the finals of the Copa America and the Copa America Centenario, both to Chile on penalties. A heartbroken Messi announced his retirement from international football, but reversed his decision later.
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WORLD CUP 2018: Both Argentina and Portugal suffered second-round exits. Messi scored only one goal in the group stage before defeat by France in the last 16.
Ronaldo, who had won the European Championship with Portugal two years earlier, scored a hat-trick in their first group fixture, a 3-3 draw with Spain. However, he missed a penalty against Iran, before Portugal lost to Uruguay in the second round.
The following year, Ronaldo helped Portugal win their first Nations League title, scoring a hat-trick in the semi-finals.
WORLD CUP 2022: Portugal were impressive, but for once it was not because of Ronaldo, who was dropped to the bench for the knockout stage as they lost in the quarter-finals.
Messi, however, delivered for his team from the start to finish.
He became the first player to score in every round of a World Cup, netting seven times between the group stage and the final, where he struck twice against France and netted Argentina’s first penalty as they won the shootout 4-2.
Messi finally stood alongside Diego Maradona in the hearts of Argentina’s fans.
For very different reasons it seemed as if the 2022 tournament would be the end of the World Cup road for both ageing superstars, but they appear to be set for one more crack.
