Curated playlist

UEFA Champions League–winning players

Lionel MessiLionel Messi's first Barcelona contract was written on a paper napkin. He was 13 at the time.
Wayne RooneyWayne Rooney was five days short of his 17th birthday when he scored the goal that made his name. On the 19th of October 2002, his last-minute strike for Everton beat Arsenal and ended their run of 30 matches without defeat. It also made…
Didier DeschampsDidier Deschamps is one of only three men to win the World Cup as both player and manager.
Luka ModrićLuka Modrić grew up in a hotel car park after his grandfather was killed. He later won the 2018 Ballon d'Or.
Philipp LahmPhilipp Lahm scored in the sixth minute of the 2006 World Cup's opening match. He was 22.
Thibaut CourtoisThibaut Courtois began as a left back before coaches turned him into a goalkeeper.
Gerd MüllerGerd Müller scored 68 goals in 62 games for West Germany. He averaged more than one goal per game for eight years.
Davor ŠukerDavor Šuker won the 1998 World Cup Golden Boot in Croatia's first World Cup. He scored six goals in seven matches.
NeymarOn the 3rd of August 2017, Neymar joined Paris Saint-Germain in a transfer worth 222 million euros, the most expensive in football history. Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior was born on the 5th of February 1992, and the world knows him by one…
Thierry HenryThierry Henry was thirteen years old in 1990 when a Monaco scout named Arnold Catalano went to watch him play. Henry's team won 6-0, and Henry scored every one of the six goals. Catalano did not ask for a trial. He asked the boy to join…
Cristiano RonaldoCristiano Ronaldo's mother wanted to abort him, but her doctor refused. He became football's top goalscorer.
Manuel NeuerManuel Neuer, the German goalkeeper born on the 27th of March 1986, completed 244 passes at the 2014 World Cup. That was more than Lionel Messi, who managed 242, and more than Thomas Müller, who managed 221. Wesley Sneijder also finished…
Sepp MaierA car crash in July 1979 nearly killed goalkeeper Sepp Maier. Doctors first found only a few rib fractures.
Thomas MüllerThomas Müller calls himself a Raumdeuter, a space interpreter. He lacks pace and dribbling, yet he beats defenders.
RonaldinhoRonaldinho scored his first La Liga goal for Barcelona at 1.30 in the morning on the 3rd of September 2003. The match against Sevilla had kicked off at five minutes past midnight. He took a pass from his own goalkeeper inside his own half,…
Xabi AlonsoXabi Alonso stood over a penalty in a Champions League final in Istanbul and watched Milan's Brazilian goalkeeper Dida save it. The ball came back out to him. Alonso fired the rebound into the roof of the net. Afterwards he said, "This is…
Zinedine ZidaneZinedine Zidane scored two headers from corners in the 1998 World Cup Final. France beat Brazil 3-0 in Paris.
Paolo RossiPaolo Rossi won the 1982 World Cup after a two-year ban for a betting scandal. The press had written him off.
Manuel AmorosFootballer Manuel Amoros won the 1992-93 Champions League with Marseille. He later coached Comoros and Benin.
Marc OvermarsMarc Overmars once pulled potatoes from the ground by running with a rope tied around his waist.
David BeckhamSir David Beckham became something of a household name on the 17th of August 1996, the opening day of the Premier League season, with a single shot from 57 yards. Manchester United were already 2-0 up against Wimbledon when Beckham noticed…
Luis SuárezLuis Suárez, the Uruguayan striker born on the 24th of January 1987, was sent off at the 2010 World Cup and still found a way to watch the penalty that followed. Late in extra time against Ghana, he had used his hands to stop a header that…
EusébioPortugal trailed North Korea 0-3, then Eusébio scored four goals. Portugal won that 1966 World Cup quarter-final 5-3.
Franco BaresiInter Milan turned Franco Baresi away and signed his older brother instead. He went to AC Milan and became a legend.
James RodríguezJames Rodríguez chested down a high ball and volleyed it in at the 2014 World Cup. It won the FIFA Puskás Award.
Oliver KahnOliver Kahn won the 2002 World Cup's best player award after fumbling a goal in the final.
Vinícius JúniorVinícius Júnior scored the only goal of the Champions League final on the 28th of May 2022. Real Madrid beat Liverpool 1-0, and the club collected a record 14th European title. The scorer was a Brazilian forward born on the 12th of July…
Mohamed SalahMohamed Salah walked off the pitch in tears during the 2018 Champions League final. In the 30th minute against Real Madrid, a challenge from the defender Sergio Ramos wrenched his left shoulder. He tried to carry on, went to the ground a…
Franz BeckenbauerFranz Beckenbauer won the World Cup as a captain, then again as a manager.
Hristo StoichkovHristo Stoichkov led an underdog Bulgaria past defending champions Germany at the 1994 World Cup.
Iker CasillasAs a child, goalkeeper Iker Casillas forgot to post his father's winning pool entry.
Michel PlatiniMichel Platini scored nine goals in five matches at the 1984 European Championship. That record stood for 37 years.
Antonio CabriniAntonio Cabrini missed a penalty in a World Cup final and still won. Italy beat West Germany in 1982.
Fabien BarthezGoalkeeper Fabien Barthez once refused to defend a penalty until an official forced him back into goal.
Rafael MárquezRafael Márquez is the only defender to captain a team at five World Cups. The Mexican played in 2002 through 2018.
Robert ProsinečkiRobert Prosinečki is the only player to score World Cup goals for two national teams.
Erling HaalandErling Haaland scored nine goals in a single match at the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Lublin, Poland, where Norway beat Honduras 12-0. No player had ever scored so many in one game at that tournament. The result was also the biggest win by…
Robert LewandowskiRobert Lewandowski walked on as a Bayern Munich substitute on the 22nd of September 2015, with his team trailing Wolfsburg 1-0. Eight minutes and 59 seconds later, he had scored five goals and Bayern led 5-1. Three of those goals fell…
Christian PulisicChristian Pulisic is an American soccer player whom fans and other players call Captain America. At the age of 25 he matched Landon Donovan's record of four U.S. Soccer Player of the Year awards. He was born in 1998, and he has since…
Karim BenzemaKarim Benzema was born in Lyon on the 19th of December 1987, to parents of Algerian and Kabyle descent. Years later he stood in front of the first-team squad of his hometown club, still a teenager. The room included Michael Essien, Sylvain…