How Likely Is Cristiano Ronaldo To Reach 1,000 Goals Before Retirement?

How likely is Cristiano Ronaldo to reach 1,000 career goals before retirement? The Portugal legend might have to play on until beyond his 42nd birthday.

Porto president Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa recently challenged Cristiano Ronaldo to get to 1,000 career goals before he retires.

Ronaldo, 38, currently holds the world record for the most goals scored by a single player in soccer history, having netted 857 times in 1,187 senior games for Sporting Lisbon, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Juventus, Al Nassr and Portugal.

When asked last week if Pinto da Costa's target of 1,000 was achievable, Ronaldo responded cautiously.

Ronaldo said: "It's going to be pretty tough, but it's about seeing how I am mentally, my motivation.

"If, physically, my legs treat me as well as I treat them? We'll see.

"There are small stages. Before I can go for 1,000, first I have to get to 900. I think I'll get there."

Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 856th and 857th career goals as Portugal beat Slovakia 3-2 last week :: IMAGO/HMB-Media/Joaquim Ferreira

Ronaldo's 857 career goals have been scored at an average of 0.72 per game.

Using that strike-rate, he would have to play another 198 matches to get the 143 goals needed to reach 1,000.

Ronaldo has played an average of 51 games per year in the past five years.

Therefore, if he keeps playing and scoring at a rate consistent with what has gone before then Ronaldo would need to continue for almost another four years to get to 1,000 goals.

That sounds somewhat unlikely, considering Ronaldo will be 42 in four years.

Al Nassr captain Ronaldo will celebrate his 39th birthday in February :: IMAGO/AFLOSPORT

Ronaldo said back in June that he expects to retire from his playing career in "two to three years maximum".

Should he stick to that retirement plan then he will need to significantly accelerate his rate of scoring if he is to get to four figures.

One expects that Ronaldo could - and perhaps should - be able to score more freely during his twilight years.

After all, he is now facing a much lower standard of opposition on a weekly basis since he said goodbye to European club soccer and began the Saudi Pro League revolution earlier this year.

He has scored 31 times in his first 36 appearances for Al Nassr, averaging 0.86 goals per game. However, his record since the start of the 2023/24 season has been a round 17 in 17.

Ronaldo has scored 17 goals in 17 games for Al Nassr so far this season :: IMAGO/AFLOSPORT

Let us imagine he can keep that goal-a-game ratio going indefinitely. In this scenario, Ronaldo would only need to feature in another 143 games to get to 1,000.

But even that optimistic projection would require Ronaldo playing until August 2026 - six months after he turns 41.

Ronaldo was right. Reaching 1,000 goals is a "pretty tough" ask.

However, if he gets close then do not be surprised if Ronaldo prolongs his record-breaking career to chase yet another landmark.

If Japanese forward Kazuyoshi Miura can still play in the Portuguese second division at the age of 56 then surely so can Ronaldo!

Kazuyoshi Miura pictured aged 56 playing for Oliveirense in Portugal's second division earlier this year :: IMAGO/AFLOSPORT