Summary
The magic of free-kicks in football is unmatched, providing iconic moments & excitement - a great equaliser among players.
Top 20 free-kick takers of all time ranked by AI cover legends like Beckham, Zidane, and Juninho, showcasing expertise and variety.
Grok's methodology used available data to highlight players with impact, iconic moments, and technical mastery across various sources.
Perhaps the best thing about football is how goals - and entire games - can be flipped on their head in countless ways. From long-range curlers into the top bins to acrobatic overhead kicks and thunderous volleys, the beautiful game offers endless opportunities for players to show they’ve got a wand of a left or right boot.
But few moments match the drama and poetry of the free-kick - football’s answer to a painter’s brushstroke. This sacred set piece has produced some of the sport’s most iconic pieces of cinema, with icons like David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Andrea Pirlo turning dead balls into pure theatre.
Even when keepers read the script, a perfectly struck knuckleball or whipped effort can defy logic and elude the greatest goalkeeper's gloves. Best of all? You don’t need to be a Ballon d’Or winner to master it. That’s the magic: the free-kick is the great equaliser. So, who are the top 20 of all time? We asked Grok, Twitter’s AI, to weigh in - and the results are in.
AI's Methodology
"The following list is compiled based on available data, including goal tallies, conversion rates, and the impact of their free-kicks, drawn from various sources like FourFourTwo, Sports Illustrated, Bleacher Report, and others. I’ve prioritised players with documented free-kick goals, iconic moments, and technical mastery, while acknowledging that older players’ stats (e.g., Pelé) can be less reliable due to inconsistent record-keeping.
"Active players like Lionel Messi are still climbing the ranks, and some cult heroes may edge out bigger names due to their set-piece specialisation."
19 James Ward-Prowse
England
James Ward-Prowse celebrates
**What Grok said: "**A modern specialist, one goal shy of Beckham’s Premier League record. His pace and precision are unmatched today."
The first surprise that AI has given us is that James Ward-Prowse doesn't rank higher than 20th. He is indisputably inside the top three best dead-ball specialists in the modern game right now, and his tally of 17 Premier League free-kick goals proves he is as reliable as they come from outside of the box. The ex-Southampton man remains just one goal off David Beckham's record in England's topflight.
18 Shunsuke Nakamura
Japan
Shunsuke Nakamura
**What Grok said: "**Japan’s set-piece artist. His Celtic Park free-kick against Man United is legendary for its curve and placement."
While Shunsuke Nakamura scored 63 goals in his career, thus prompting YouTube videos being made in his honour that exceeded the 10-minute mark just to be able to fit in every moment he lifted the ball over the wall and out of the goalkeeper's reach, none are more iconic than his one against Manchester United.
In the 81st-minute, his sorcery of a left-footed curler evaded Edwin van der Sar and was the difference in a 1-0 victory as the Hoops secured qualification into the Champions League knockout stages for the first time since its renaming in 1992.
17 Didi
Brazil
**What Grok said: "**Invented the “folha seca” (falling leaf) technique. His mid-20th-century free-kicks laid the groundwork for modern specialists."
Though you will have likely heard of Garrincha and Pele, it can be argued that Didi was just as - if not more - influential to Brazil's first two World Cup wins. He was the tempo-setter in both finals, and on the odd occasion the world's finest football team did go behind, his free-kicks were a great source of relief. Of the 20 goals he scored for Selecao, 12 of them were from a free-kick situation.
He invented the "falling leaf" technique. The name comes from the way the ball dips and swerves unpredictably in the air, much like a leaf fluttering to the ground. The ball would rise high, then suddenly drop sharply, often confusing goalkeepers who couldn’t anticipate its final path. Nowadays, fans prefer to use the term "knuckleball," which inspired the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo.
16 Gheorghe Hagi
Romania
Gheorghe Hagi
**What Grok said: "**The “Maradona of the Carpathians” struck torpedoes with might and precision. A left-footed legend."
Unlike some free-kick takers who had a signature style, Gheorghe Hagi, the Romanian icon who became a part of the international football fabric throughout the 90s, had variety - he could blast it, bend it, or clip it delicately. He was also one of the first to cheekily roll it underneath a jumping wall to catch everyone off guard.
15 Gianfranco Zola
Italy
Gianfranco Zola celebrates with his arms outstretched after scoring for Chelsea.
**What Grok said: "**Serie A’s sixth-best free-kick scorer. His minimal-effort curlers were a joy, especially at Chelsea."
Gianfranco Zola didn’t rely on brute force. Instead, he mastered the art of curling the ball far outside the post before whipping it back in just in time to ripple the back of the net. His technique was also deeply deceptive - his short run-up and upright posture gave little away, and he often struck the ball with minimal backlift, making it difficult for goalkeepers to predict where it was going.
On top of that, his quick improvisation allowed him to adapt on the fly, catching both defenders and 'keepers napping with clever, instinctive changes based on his ever-changing environment.
14 Thierry Henry
France
Thierry Henry Arsenal
**What Grok said: "**Silky and precise, his 12 Premier League free-kick goals are a club record for Arsenal. Underrated set-piece threat."
Grok is right. For all the qualities Thierry Henry became known for as he forged a reputation as the greatest player in Premier League history (a crown he still claims today), nobody ever seems to note his free-kick ability. But when you consider just how elite his intelligence was and how naturally - and technically - gifted he was in his halcyon days, it makes complete sense that he makes an appearance on this list.
13 Roberto Carlos
Brazil
Roberto Carlos
**What Grok said: "**Low conversion rate, but when he connected, it was spectacular—think his 1997 “banana” free-kick for Brazil."
Whether it be his "banana" free-kick for Brazil, which saw him slam a violent shot with the outside of his left boot from 40 yards out against France in 1997, or his countless examples of laser-like strikes for Real Madrid, Roberto Carlos - monikered "Bullet Man" for reasons you can guess - is the player with the most iconic free-kick goals in football history. He absolutely deserves his place high up in the AI's ranking.
Paolo Maldini (AC Milan), Roberto Carlos (Real Madrid), Gerard Pique (Barcleona) with Champions League theme Related
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12 Zinedine Zidane
France
Zidane
**What Grok said: "**Not a high volume scorer, but his free-kicks, like against Spain in Euro 2000, were pure class."
From one Real Madrid galactico to another, Zinedine Zidane had a way of doing things with a football, almost as though gravity was in his full control. Volleys were a trademark during his Ballon d'Or and World Cup-worthy playing days, and that same expertise translated nicely into dead-ball situations, though he was normally pushed to one side by the likes of Beckham and Carlos.
11 Andrea Pirlo
Italy
ac milan andrea pirlo
**What Grok said: "**The Maestro’s “three-toe” technique, inspired by Juninho, produced pinpoint curlers. Elegant and deadly."
Andrea Pirlo spent his early days meticulously studying the free-kick techniques of those that came before him. But by the end of his career, it was he who was being studied. Renowned for his cold-blooded composure, the Italian placed his shots around the wall as though he was in an old grainy romance film, and his compilation of free-kick stunners is befitting of royalty.
10 Sinisa Mihajlovic
Serbia
Siniša Mihajlović
**What Grok said: "**Scored a hat-trick of free-kicks in one game. His whipped, powerful strikes were a goalkeeper’s nightmare."
Yep, you heard that right. During a Serie A game between Lazio and Sampdoria, Sinisa Mihajlovic achieved an almost mythical achievement by scoring a hat-trick of free-kicks. By the end of his time in Italy, the Eagles' icon had scored 28 goals from dead-ball situations (a joint record with Pirlo), bringing his total tally to over 50. But somehow, he doesn't quite crack the top 10.