Most Trophies in Soccer: Top 15 Players Ranked (2026)

Lionel Messi is the most decorated player in soccer history with 45 senior team trophies. Behind him, the picture changed dramatically in 2026: PSG captain Marquinhos climbed to 43 and set a record no player had ever held, while Dani Alves — the man who wore the crown for most of the last decade — slipped to third.

Winning trophies in soccer is incredibly difficult. Many world-class players retire without ever lifting a major piece of silverware, which makes the achievements of the most decorated players even more remarkable. These legends didn't just win occasionally — they turned trophy collecting into an art form.

Below is the full ranking, updated after the 2026 World Cup, the 2025–26 European season and the 2026 UEFA Super Cup. Every figure is counted under one consistent rule, explained in full further down.

Most Trophies in Soccer: The Top 15 at a Glance

Figures verified against club and federation records as of 8 September 2026. Totals for active players will keep moving — Messi, Marquinhos, Di María, Ronaldo, Müller and Modrić can all still add to their counts this season.

What Counts as a Trophy?

Before diving into our countdown, it's important to clarify what constitutes an official trophy. We're counting all major competitive honors at both club and international level, including:

• Domestic leagues and cups
• Continental competitions (Champions League, Copa Libertadores, etc.)
• International tournaments (World Cup, continental championships)
• Official super cups and club world championships
• Olympic medals (for senior teams)

What we do not count: individual awards such as the Ballon d'Or or Golden Boot, youth honors like the U-20 World Cup, and pre-season invitational trophies. That last rule matters more than it sounds — it is the single biggest reason our numbers differ from other lists, and we explain the rest of those differences below.

1. Lionel Messi (45 trophies)

The Argentine maestro stands alone at the summit of football's most decorated players. Messi's collection includes 10 La Liga titles, four Champions Leagues, two Ligue 1 titles and the 2022 World Cup that had eluded him for so long. He added the 2024 Copa América, the 2024 Supporters' Shield and, in December 2025, Inter Miami's first MLS Cup — the most recent trophy of his career.

What makes the achievement extraordinary isn't the quantity but the quality of his contributions. Unlike players who accumulated trophies as squad members, Messi was usually the reason his teams won. His last shot at a second World Cup ended in defeat: Spain beat Argentina 1–0 in the 2026 final at MetLife Stadium, with Ferran Torres scoring in extra time, and Messi collected the Silver Ball before retiring from international football.

2. Marquinhos (43 trophies)

The biggest change to this list in years. The Brazilian center-back has spent his entire prime at Paris Saint-Germain, and in August 2026 the UEFA Super Cup win over Aston Villa took him to 40 trophies with a single club — a world record, breaking the mark of 39 held by Hossam Ashour at Al Ahly.

His PSG haul reads like a full trophy cabinet on its own: 11 Ligue 1 titles, eight Coupes de France, six Coupe de la Ligue, 10 Trophées des Champions, two UEFA Super Cups, the 2025 FIFA Intercontinental Cup, and back-to-back Champions Leagues in 2025 and 2026. Add the 2012 Copa Libertadores with Corinthians, Olympic gold in 2016 and the 2019 Copa América with Brazil, and only Messi is ahead of him.

3. Dani Alves (42 trophies)

For most of the last decade the Brazilian right-back held the crown as football's most decorated player. That is no longer true — both Messi and Marquinhos have passed him — but his career remains one of the most successful ever assembled.

Alves won major honors with Sevilla, Barcelona, Juventus, PSG and São Paulo, plus two Copas América, two Confederations Cups and Olympic gold with Brazil. His Barcelona years alone produced six La Liga titles and three Champions Leagues. He redefined what a full-back could be, proving that defenders could be just as influential in winning trophies as attackers.

4. Hossam Hassan (40 trophies)

The Egyptian striker combined prolific goalscoring with an enormous trophy haul across a career that spanned four decades. Hassan won league titles with both Al Ahly and Zamalek — a rare feat in Cairo — along with three Africa Cup of Nations titles with Egypt.

One caveat worth stating plainly: around eight of his 40 titles come from Arab regional competitions such as the Arab Club Champions Cup and the Afro-Asian Cup, several of which no longer exist. Lists that exclude those competitions put him closer to 32. His achievements still highlight a rich football culture that is routinely overlooked outside Europe and South America.

5. Hossam Ashour (39 trophies)

Another Egyptian legend, the defensive midfielder spent his entire senior career at Al Ahly, becoming a symbol of their continental dominance. Ashour won 13 Egyptian Premier League titles, six CAF Champions Leagues, five CAF Super Cups, one CAF Confederation Cup, 10 Egyptian Super Cups and four Egypt Cups — every one of them with the same club.

That gave him the world record for most trophies at a single club until Marquinhos passed him in August 2026. His is the cleanest number on this entire list: every honor is documented, and no source disputes the total.

6. Sergio Busquets (37 trophies)

The midfield metronome epitomized Barcelona's tiki-taka era while quietly assembling one of the game's great trophy collections: nine La Liga titles and three Champions Leagues in Catalonia, plus the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012 with Spain.

He followed Messi to Inter Miami and finished his career in the best possible way, retiring after the 2025 season as an MLS Cup winner following a 3–1 final victory over Vancouver. Jordi Alba retired alongside him. Often overshadowed by flashier teammates, Busquets proved that reading the game is worth as much as beating a man.

7. Maxwell (37 trophies)

Perhaps the most underrated player on this list, Maxwell perfected the art of the strategic career move. The Brazilian left-back won titles with Ajax, Inter Milan, Barcelona and PSG — essentially following success wherever it led.

At Ajax he won two Eredivisie titles. His move to Inter coincided with their dominant run under Roberto Mancini and José Mourinho, where he collected three Serie A titles. Barcelona added two La Liga crowns and a Champions League, and PSG delivered four consecutive Ligue 1 titles. Note that his total is genuinely contested: strict competition-by-competition counts put him at 33, while most published lists use 37.

8. Andrés Iniesta (36 trophies)

If trophies were awarded for grace under pressure, Iniesta would need a separate warehouse. The Spanish magician scored the goal that won Spain their first World Cup and was central to their European Championship victories. At Barcelona he won nine La Liga titles and four Champions Leagues, usually providing the decisive moment.

He kept winning late in his career at Vissel Kobe, lifting the Emperor's Cup and the Japanese Super Cup, before retiring in October 2024 after a final spell in the United Arab Emirates. If you enjoy this kind of debate, our look at the greatest midfielders in soccer history covers the same era from a different angle.

9. Gerard Piqué (36 trophies)

The center-back's path was unusual — starting at Barcelona, developing at Manchester United, then returning home to become a Camp Nou fixture. Piqué won eight La Liga titles and four Champions Leagues, plus the World Cup and European Championship with Spain.

His partnerships with Carles Puyol and later Sergio Ramos formed the backbone of two historically successful teams, club and country. Piqué's habit of scoring in big games made him more than a defender during Barcelona's greatest era.

10. Ángel Di María (36 trophies)

The most underrated winner of his generation, and the only Argentine other than Messi in the top 15. Di María won five trophies at Benfica, six at Real Madrid — including the 2014 Champions League, where he was man of the match in the final — and 19 across seven seasons at PSG.

With Argentina he has five: the 2022 World Cup, the 2021 and 2024 Copas América, the 2022 Finalissima and Olympic gold in 2008. He scored in the finals of the Copa América, the Finalissima and the World Cup. He returned home to Rosario Central and won the 2025 Argentine league title there, and he has not yet retired.

11. Ryan Giggs (36 trophies)

The Welsh winger spent his entire career at Manchester United, becoming the most decorated player in English football history. Giggs won 13 Premier League titles, two Champions Leagues and four FA Cups during United's dominant era under Sir Alex Ferguson.

His longevity was extraordinary — first trophy in 1991, last in 2013, 22 years of sustained success. His total includes 10 Community Shields; British lists that treat the Shield as a curtain-raiser rather than a trophy put him at 26 instead. Wales never qualified for a major tournament during his career, which makes the club haul more remarkable, not less.

12. Cristiano Ronaldo (35 trophies)

The Portuguese forward kept adding to his collection deep into his forties. From his breakthrough at Manchester United to his record-breaking Real Madrid years, Ronaldo has now won league titles in four different countries: England, Spain, Italy and — since May 2026 — Saudi Arabia, where he scored twice in the match that sealed Al-Nassr's Saudi Pro League title.

His haul includes five Champions Leagues, Euro 2016 and two UEFA Nations League titles with Portugal, the second of them in June 2025. His international career ended at the 2026 World Cup, where Portugal lost 1–0 to Spain in the round of 16.

13. Thomas Müller (35 trophies)

Germany's most decorated player, and a one-club man until his forties. Müller won 33 trophies at Bayern Munich, among them 13 Bundesliga titles, six DFB-Pokals, two Champions Leagues and two Club World Cups, plus the 2014 World Cup with Germany.

He moved to the Vancouver Whitecaps in 2025 and added the Canadian Championship, passing Toni Kroos as the German player with the most career titles. He is still playing, which means this number is not final.

14. Luka Modrić (34 trophies)

Still competing at 40. Modrić won six trophies at Dinamo Zagreb before joining Real Madrid, where he assembled 28 more across 13 seasons — six Champions Leagues, four La Liga titles and five Club World Cup or Intercontinental Cup wins among them.

That makes him the most decorated player in Real Madrid's history, a distinction that previously belonged to Marcelo. He joined AC Milan on a free transfer in 2025 and extended his contract into 2027. Croatia went out at the 2026 World Cup in the round of 32.

15. Toni Kroos (34 trophies)

The German midfielder won 10 trophies at Bayern Munich, including the 2013 Champions League, and the rest at Real Madrid. His six Champions League titles are a total matched by only a handful of players in the competition's history, and he added four La Liga titles in Madrid.

He also won the 2014 World Cup with Germany and retired in July 2024 immediately after Euro 2024. His exact figure is disputed: Real Madrid's own records credit him with a Super Cup won weeks after his retirement, which is why some lists show 32 and others 34.

Who Is the Most Successful Footballer of All Time?

By trophies alone, the most successful footballer of all time is Lionel Messi, with 45 senior team honors. But "most successful" and "most decorated" are not quite the same question, and the answer changes depending on what you weigh.

If you count individual recognition, Messi wins again: eight Ballon d'Or awards to Ronaldo's five, and no other football player has more than three. If you weigh peak-level dominance, Ronaldo's five Champions League titles across two clubs, in two different systems, is the harder achievement to replicate. And if you value winning at the very highest level of international football, only a handful of players on this list — Messi, Piqué, Iniesta, Busquets, Di María, Kroos, Müller and Giggs' contemporaries at Old Trafford — have a World Cup or a European Championship to show for it.

There is also a version of the question that has nothing to do with silverware, which we cover separately in our look at the greatest soccer player of all time.

Messi vs Ronaldo: Who Has More Trophies?

Messi has more trophies than Ronaldo — 45 to 35. The gap has been consistent for years, and it widened again in 2025 when Messi added the MLS Cup. Ronaldo closed part of it in 2026 with the Saudi Pro League title, but not enough to change the order.

Both retired from international football after the 2026 World Cup in North America, where Argentina lost the final to Spain and Portugal went out in the round of 16. For the tournament records behind those runs, see our guide to Spain's World Cup titles.

Active Players With the Most Trophies

Six players in the top 15 are still playing, and the order at the top could change within a single season. Messi (45) leads, followed by Marquinhos (43), Di María (36), Ronaldo (35), Müller (35) and Modrić (34).

Marquinhos is the one to watch. He is 32, still PSG's captain, and playing for a club that has won at least three trophies in nine of the last 11 seasons. At his current rate he would draw level with Messi within two or three years — and unlike Messi, he is not close to retirement.

Why Some Legends Rank Lower Than You'd Expect

Several of the game's most celebrated players sit well outside this top 15, and the reasons are more interesting than the raw numbers.

Paolo Maldini (26) spent 25 years at AC Milan and won seven Serie A titles and five European Cups — often misreported the other way round. What holds his total down is Italy: he played in a World Cup final, a World Cup semi-final and a European Championship final, and lost all three. He is arguably the greatest defender ever with zero international trophies.

Kenny Dalglish (30) won three European Cups with Liverpool in an era with far fewer competitions to enter. Lists that show him at 35 include the Glasgow Cup, the Drybrough Cup and the British Home Championship — regional and invitational events that no longer exist. His figure also gets inflated when writers accidentally fold in his trophies as a manager.

Vítor Baía (31) is the most decorated goalkeeper in the game's history, with 10 Portuguese league titles at Porto and the 2004 Champions League. Goalkeepers are systematically underrepresented on lists like this one, which is a shame — as our piece on goalkeepers who scored goals shows, they are rarely as passive as the record books suggest.

Clarence Seedorf (19) is the only player to win the Champions League with three different clubs — Ajax, Real Madrid and AC Milan — which is a rarer achievement than a big trophy count. His time at Sampdoria and Inter produced nothing, and the title he won at Botafogo was the Campeonato Carioca, a Rio state championship rather than a Brazilian league title.

Daniel Passarella (9) captained Argentina to the 1978 World Cup and won seven Argentine league titles with River Plate, but six years at Fiorentina and Inter produced no silverware at all. He is a reminder that a legendary career and a long trophy list are different things.

Why Trophy Counts Differ Between Sources

Search for this topic and you will find Messi listed at 44, 45, 46 and 47 on four different sites, all published this year. None of them is lying. Three specific rules account for almost every discrepancy:

• Youth honors. Messi won the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship with Argentina's under-20s. Counting it makes him 46; we don't, so he is 45.
• Olympic gold. Olympic football is an under-23 tournament with overage players. We count it — Messi in 2008, Alves in 2021, Marquinhos in 2016 — but lists that treat it as a youth event drop each of those players by one.
• Regional, state and super cups. This is the big one. Brazilian state championships, Arab regional cups and the English Community Shield are official competitions, but many outlets exclude them. That single decision moves Hossam Hassan from 40 to 32 and Ryan Giggs from 36 to 26.

Our approach is to count every senior competitive title won with a first team, exclude youth and individual awards, and tell you where the disagreements are rather than pretending a single number is settled. Every figure here was checked against club and federation records on 8 September 2026.

Conclusion

Messi's 45 trophies still represent the summit, but 2026 made this a live record rather than a settled one. Marquinhos is 32, two behind, and playing for the most consistently successful club in Europe. Ashour's single-club record, which stood for years, fell in August.

This list honors players who combined individual brilliance with collective achievement across different eras and continents — and, in a few cases, players whose greatness was never really about the number next to their name. For more on the individual records behind these careers, see our breakdown of the most assists in soccer history.