Scoring penalties may look easy, but the pressure before kicking the ball makes it an absolutely difficult task. Over the years, football has produced some of the best penalty-takers, who have scored more than 100 goals from the spot.
10. Sergio Aguero
Sergio Aguero poses beside his statue at Etihad Stadium on May 13 2022 in Manchester, England. Photo: Matt McNulty
The legendary Argentine and Manchester City striker is the 10th-best player with the most penalty goals in football. Aguero was a prolific scorer and one of the best no.9s of his generation.
Position: Striker
Total penalties: 62
Scored: 48
Teams: Indipendiente, Atletico Madrid, Manchester City, FC Barcelona, Argentina.
Year: 2003-2021
9. Edinson Cavani
Edison Cavani of Valencia CF looks on during the La Liga Santander match against RCD Espanyol at RCDE Stadium on 2 October 2022 in Barcelona, Spain. Photo: Pedro Salado
Cavani has played in top European leagues such as Serie A, Ligue 1, the Premier League, and La Liga. He has scored plenty of goals, including penalties.
Position: Striker
Total penalties: 72
Scored: 58
Teams: Danubio, Palermo, Napoli, Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester United, Valencia, Uruguay
Year: 2005-date
8. Frank Lampard
The Chelsea legend is one of the highest goal-scoring midfielders of all time. Lampard played as a box-to-box midfielder and was a good penalty-taker. He only missed 10 times from the spot kick.
Total penalties: 70
Scored: 60
Teams: West Ham United, Chelsea, Manchester City, New York City, England
Career: 1995-2016
7. Ronaldinho
Former Brazilian footballer Ronaldinho poses ahead of the TV show on 15 May 2022 in Paris. Photo: Franck Fife
Gaucho became a household name and fan favourite because of his magical ability. Besides bending free kicks into the net, Ronaldinho also scored penalties with ease.
Position: Attacking midfielder
Total penalties: 87
Scored: 70
Teams: Grêmio, Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona, AC Milan, Flamengo, Atlético Mineiro, Querétaro, Fluminense, Brazil
Career: 1998-2015
6. Alan Shearer
Talk about the player with the most penalty goals in the Premier League. Shearer netted 56 times from the spot in the league. He is also the all-time top scorer in the English topflight with 260 goals.
Position: Striker
Total penalties: 77
Scored: 72
Teams: Southampton, Blackburn Rovers, Newcastle United, England
Career: 1988-2006
5. Alessandro Del Piero
Former player Alessandro Del Piero looks on during the UEFA Nations League Group 3 football match between Italy and England. Photo: Marco Canoniero
The Juventus legend scored 77 times from the spot during his career. Del Piero is also Juventus's all-time top scorer with 290 goals and one of the leading scorers in the history of Serie A.
Position: Striker
Total penalties: 92
Scored: 77
Teams: Padova, Juventus, Sydney FC, Delhi Dynamos, Italy
Career: 1991-2014
4. Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Zlatan Ibrahimovic of AC Milan looks on during the UEFA Champions League group E match against Chelsea FC at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium on 11 October 2022 in Milan, Italy. Photo: Marco Luzzani
The self-anointed football 'lion' has defied expectations throughout his career. Zlatan still plays in a top European club (AC Milan) at 40. However, he has missed 17 penalties from 101 opportunities.
Position: Striker
Total penalties: 101
Scored: 84
Teams: Malmö FF, Ajax, Juventus, Inter Milan, Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester United, LA Galaxy, AC Milan, Sweden
Career: 1999-date
3. Francesco Totti
Francesco Totti during the Serie A match between AS Roma vs US Salernitana on 10 April 2022 in Rome, Italy. Photo: Fabio Rossi
Totti is AS Roma legend and the third player with the most penalty goals in football. He is the only one-club player on the list, having netted 86 times from the spot during his career. Totti also played for the Italian national football team.
Position: Striker
Total penalties: 106
Scored: 86
Teams: AS Roma, Italy
Career: 1993-2017
2. Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi of PSG during the UEFA Champions League group H match against SL Benfica at Estadio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica aka Estadio da Luz on 5 October 2022 in Lisbon, Portugal. Photo: Jean Catuffe
Leo is second on the list after converting 103 chances from the spot. He is widely considered the best player ever in football. However, the Argentine and PSG star has missed the most penalties in history.
Position: Striker
Total penalties: 135
Scored: 105
Teams: Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Argentina
Career: 2004-date
1. Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo of Manchester United reacts during the UEFA Europa League group E match against Omonia Nikosia at Old Trafford on 13 October 2022 in Manchester, England. Photo: James Gill
Source: Getty Images
The Portuguese star holds the record for netting the most goals from the spot in this century. He is also second among the players who have missed the most penalties. Ronaldo became the first footballer to reach 700 goals after scoring for Manchester United in a 2-1 home win over Everton on 9 October 2022.
Position: Striker
Total penalties: 174
Scored: 145
Teams: Sporting Lisbon, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Juventus, Portugal.
Career: 2002-present
Who has scored the most penalty goals in a season?
Cr7 also has the record for the most penalty goals scored in a league season. Ronaldo converted 12 opportunities from the spot in the 2011-12 and 2019-20 seasons. Others are Messi (10) in the 2011-12 season and Jorginho (10) in 2021.
Most penalty goals in UCL
Ronaldo has also scored the most goals from the spot in the Champions League (19), followed by Messi (18) and Robert Lewandowski (16) as of 11 October 2022.
