# Who is the greatest goalscorer in continental football tournament history?

> Rank the greatest goalscorers in continental football tournament history — from Cristiano Ronaldo's 14 UEFA Euro goals and Hossam Hassan's 18 AFCON strikes to the Copa América record-holders Norberto Méndez and Zizinho.

*By YPB Team · Published May 23, 2026 · https://youpick.best/ranking/who-is-the-greatest-goalscorer-in-continental-football-tournament-history*

---

## Current results (no votes yet)

1. **Cristiano Ronaldo**
   The UEFA Euro's all-time top scorer with 14 goals across six tournaments, no player has come close to his accumulation of goals in continental football in Europe.
2. **Michel Platini**
   Scored nine goals in a single European Championship — Euro 1984 — the highest tally ever in one edition of any major continental tournament, including all five group-stage goals for France.
3. **Hossam Hassan**
   Africa's all-time top scorer in international football with 68 goals and the AFCON record scorer with 18 goals across multiple Africa Cup of Nations tournaments for Egypt.
4. **Lionel Messi**
   Copa América's all-time leading scorer with 13 goals and the tournament's winner in 2021, the Argentine icon brought his magical finishing ability to continental competition for South America.
5. **Norberto Méndez**
   Argentine striker who holds the joint-record for most Copa América goals with 17, a prolific forward from the 1940s who dominated South American football for nearly a decade.
6. **Zizinho**
   Brazilian football genius who shares the Copa América all-time scoring record with 17 goals, a technical and creative forward widely considered the best South American footballer before Pelé.
7. **Samuel Eto'o**
   Cameroon's greatest striker who also holds joint-record status among Africa Cup of Nations top scorers, winning the AFCON twice and finishing as one of the continent's all-time leading tournament scorers.
8. **Gabriel Batistuta**
   Argentina's ferocious and prolific striker who scored 11 Copa América goals, including nine in a single edition, winning the tournament in 1991 and 1993 as one of South America's greatest finishers.
9. **Landon Donovan**
   The CONCACAF Gold Cup's all-time top scorer who helped the United States win multiple Gold Cup titles with his trademark clinical finishing throughout the 2000s and 2010s.
10. **Alan Shearer**
   Top scorer at Euro 1996 with five goals on home soil at Wembley, the powerful Newcastle and England striker's performances were the highlight of England's tournament run to the semi-finals.
11. **Ali Daei**
   Iran's legendary striker who scored prolifically in the AFC Asian Cup for his national team and was once the world's leading scorer in international football with 109 goals.
12. **Didier Drogba**
   Ivory Coast's iconic striker who led his nation in AFCON competition for over a decade, scoring key goals in multiple Africa Cup of Nations while dominating African football.

Tags: europe, sports, football, players, world cup