Although international football hasn’t been something that is in high demand among the fans, the players have always expressed their desire and pride to play for their nations.
Many legendary players over the years have represented their respective countries on the football field and also scored plenty of goals in international tournaments.
We are going to discuss the players who are holding the record of scoring the most hat-tricks in international matches.
5. Pele 7:
Pele has been described as one of the best players of all time. The Brazilian led his nation to World Cup glory three times during his playing career. The forward scored in the World Cup final in 1958 and became the first teenager to score in the final.
The former Santos man scored 77 goals in 92 international matches, scoring seven hat-tricks during this process. Pele’s influence in Brazilian football culture has been enormous. After being the only player to win three world cups, the Brazilian was named the “FIFA Player of the Century” in 2000.
4. Lionel Messi 7:
The Argentine is one of the best players in this generation and some might argue that he is the best who has ever played the game. However, given he hasn’t managed to win the world cup yet, it is hard to say that he is the best of all time.
The PSG man has registered 55 career hat-tricks so far and seven of them came with the Argentina national team. After winning Copa America this summer, the 34-year-old has overcome his trophy drought in international football and the former Barcelona man will be eyeing a world cup title next year as this might be his last chance to win this tournament.
3. Ali Daei 8:
The Iranian player was the leading goal scorer in international football until Cristiano Ronaldo broke his record a few months ago. Daei is called a legend of Asian football given he represented teams like Bayern Munich and Hertha Berlin.
The former Iran international was the leading goal scorer for 17 years, scoring 109 goals in 149 games. He also scored eight hat tricks during his time with the national team.
2. Sven Rydell – 9:
The former Swedish forward was the first player who came out to become a legend of Sweden. The striker scored 49 goals in 43 games and the most impressive part is scoring nine hat-tricks. The Swedish held the highest scorer of their nation for 80 years before Zlatan Ibrahimovic broke this record in 2014.
1. Cristiano Ronaldo – 10:
The Portuguese superstar has been breaking records throughout his career. The rivalry between Messi and the Manchester United man has been the highlight of modern football. However, both players have reached the final few years of their respective careers, but it is still hard to stop them from scoring goals and breaking records.
Ronaldo is the highest goal scorer in international football with 115 goals and also the highest scorer in the history of football with 794 goals. He has registered 58 hat-tricks in his football career and 10 of those came on the international stage. The Portuguese’s hat trick against Luxembourg on 10th October has taken him beyond Sven Rydell’s nine hat tricks mark. Which placed the player at the top.
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