As Cristiano Ronaldo once said when asked who the greatest goalscorer of all time was, "It's all about numbers", and the Portuguese forward has statisticians racing around to keep up with his prolific consistency. But while the former Real Madrid star has set countless records, he doesn't hold one for the most goals scored in a single calendar year.
Ronaldo is one of eight players whose knack for finding the back of the net has led them to top the charts from January 1st to December 31st. He's joined by interesting names, including a longtime rival, a player following in his footsteps and several Brazilians who lit up world football ahead of the millennium.
11 Cristiano Ronaldo - 61 Goals (2014)
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Cristiano Ronaldo is statistically the greatest goalscorer of all time and inevitably lands on this list more than once. The Portuguese forward was at the peak of his powers in the mid-2010s, and 2014 was a special year for the Real Madrid superstar.
The former Manchester United man lifted the first of four Champions League trophies won with Madrid and did so as the competition's top scorer with 14 goals. That was part of an overall campaign for club and country that saw him hit 61 goals and truly lay claim to being one of the very best footballers in history.
Ronaldo didn't enjoy the best of the FIFA World Cup campaigns in Brazil that year, but did score in a 2-1 win against Ghana. By this stage, it was the norm for him to reach goalscoring numbers that others could only dream of.
10 Kylian Mbappe - 62 Goals (2025)
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By the time the New Year rings in, there's every chance Kylian Mbappe will have reached the 70-goal milestone. The French forward is loving life at Real Madrid and replicating the sensational form that earned him a long-awaited move from Paris Saint-Germain.
Mbappe sits on 62 goals as of December 4th, and he has four more games to add to that tally. His undoubted consistency has seen him score 16 goals in 15 La Liga outings and a jaw-dropping nine goals in five Champions League games.
It was a difficult debut season at the Santiago Bernabeu, as Los Blancos lost out to Barcelona in the La Liga title race. But he quietly remained as prolific as ever and has taken it up a notch this season.
9 Cristiano Ronaldo - 63 Goals (2012)
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2012 is an apocalyptic disaster film, but there was nothing disastrous about Cristiano Ronaldo's form that year; in fact, this was arguably the best year of his rivalry with Lionel Messi. Both produced record-breaking numbers, and the Portuguese bagged 63 goals in another phenomenal period.
Portugal fell short in the European Championships, but Ronaldo ensured they at least reached the semi-finals with three goals against the Netherlands and Czechia, making him the joint top scorer. His exploits for Los Blancos were outrageous, with 46 goals in 38 games, helping the club win La Liga with a best-ever points tally of 100.
Ronaldo couldn't be denied the Ballon d'Or the following year, which recognised his amazing calendar year. But he somehow bettered his goalscoring output in 2013.
8 Cristiano Ronaldo - 69 Goals (2013)
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Real Madrid's stranglehold on the Champions League trophy in the 2010s was thanks in part to Cristiano Ronaldo coming into his prime. His best goalscoring year came during the start of that famous run, and he managed 69 goals for club and country in 2013.
Ronaldo finished that year as the top scorer in Europe's top-tier tournament with 12 goals, and he kick-started another top-scoring campaign in the second half of the year. He also registered 31 goals in the 2013-14 La Liga campaign to bag another Golden Boot.
While 2013 wasn't the best of years for Ronaldo's teams, it was undoubtedly his best in front of goal. To have three entries for top scoring in calendar years is unbelievable, but not when you're talking about the Portugal captain.
7 Robert Lewandowski - 69 Goals (2021)
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Was Robert Lewandowski robbed of a Ballon d'Or in 2021? The Polish striker's goals put up a good case given he reached 69 goals and broke several records in the process. One of those was Gerd Muller's 49-year-old record of 41 goals in a single Bundesliga season (2020-21).
Putting up 43 goals in 2021 was another record for most German top-flight goals in a calendar year, and he finished the year as Europe's top goalscorer. A sixth Bundesliga Golden Boot also arrived in his trophy cabinet, and a seventh consecutive title accompanied this.
Lewandowski also came up with three goals at that year's European Championships while captaining Poland and that included an equaliser in a 1-1 draw against Spain. He continued to find the back of the net in World Cup qualifiers and struck twice in a 7-1 mauling of San Marino.
6 Romario - 72 Goals (2000)
Romario
The first of three Brazilians to feature is Romario, who was addicted to goals in 2000 with a stunning overall tally of 72. Whenever the Vasco da Gama frontman surged towards the goal, there was a sense that the net would ripple.
Romario was just coming off a year in which he missed Brazil's Copa America triumph for a claimed eye injury which turned out to be a holiday. The vacation may have paid off as he continued firing his nation to victory as he had years before with a hat-trick in a 5-0 win against Bolivia and four goals in a 6-0 thrashing of Venezuela.
Those were his first two international appearances since April 1998 and speak volumes of his goalscoring instinct. There are question marks over the official numbers given for his goals for Vasco this year but he finished top scorer in Carioca with 16 goals and Copa do Brasil with eight.
5 Zico - 72 Goals (1979)
Zico
One of football's most underrated players is Zico and that's purely because he deserves more recognition among the Brazilian greats. An example of his enormous talent came in 1979 when he recorded the best goalscoring calendar year of any non-striker with 72 goals for club and country.
The iconic attacking midfielder won the Carioca with Flamengo and he finished top scorer with 34 goals during an undefeated campaign. He was thriving and laying claim to being one of the best on the planet but he didn't land in Europe until 1983 when he joined Italian outfit Udinese.
Zico had peaked before this, quite possibly in 1979 and that included for Brazil alongside Ginga legends such as Falcao and Socrates. He was part of a Selecao side that made it to the semi-finals of Copa America before being eliminated by Paraguay, although one has to wonder why he didn't feature in the two legs.
4 Pele - 72 Goals (1965)
A photo of Pele at Santos.
Pele wasn't only about goals, but he sure knew where to find the back of the net during his illustrious career. Case in point, his incredible tally of 72 goals he put up in 1965, which is under debate due to friendlies he participated in.
But he was truly undeniable in front of goal and gave defenders nightmares because of his unique playing style. There was no major international tournament this year, but he was among the goals in qualifiers and friendlies, including a 5-1 thrashing of England in May.
Santos won the Brazilian league and he played an instrumental role while continuing to cement his legacy as one of, if not, the greatest attackers in history. But he'd already delivered better goalscoring numbers seven years earlier.
3 Pele - 75 Goals (1958)
Pele is lifted up by his team-mates after Brazil's 1970 World Cup success.
While there is a discrepancy over Pele's goalscoring record, there is no denying he was one of the most prolific players to grace 'the beautiful game'. And he was bagging goals for fun in 1958 when he was just 17 years old and getting started putting his name up in lights.
Pele's exploits at the World Cup that year were outstanding as he managed six goals, including a hat-trick, in a win against France in the semi-finals. He added a brace in a 5-2 victory over Sweden in the final, which to this day makes him the youngest goalscorer in the competition's final.
The late Brazilian hero was also on fire for Santos FC, managing 58 goals as they claimed the league title. If any of the younger generation want an example of his greatness, they just need to look at his feats in 1958.
2 Gerd Muller - 85 Goals (1972)
Gerd Muller for Bayern
Gerd Muller held the record for the most goals in a single calendar year for 40 years, and 1972 was a year to remember for the iconic German forward. He spearheaded West Germany's attack at the European Championships and four goals included a brace in a victory over the USSR in the final.
His tally for his nation that year was 20 goals, bringing his total to 68 goals in 62 caps. But the goals continued to flow at club level with Bayern Munich as he registered 65 goals, with 40 of those helping the Bavarians win the Bundesliga title while he claimed the Golden Boot.