Top 10 Most Rated Footballers in the World 2022

There has never been an agreement on who the most rated footballer in the world is. Everyone wants their fave on the list irrespective of their true status in the soccer industry and that’s okay.

This post however gives volume to the top 10 most rated footballers in the world in 2022, especially at the moment. Let’s see if your favorites make it to the list.

Top 10 Most Rated Footballers in the World

10. Harry Kane

Harry Kane is a professional footballer known for his Striker position. The 28-year-old English International player is currently part of the Tottenham Hotspur team.

Kane is also captain of the England national team. He is best rated for his amazing goalscoring record and link play capacity proven over the years.

He is regarded as one of the best strikers in the world.

9. Erling Haaland

Erling Haaland is definitely one of the youngest footballers in the world with a great track record. The 21-year-old striker is a Norwegian professional footballer, currently with the German Bundesliga club, Borussia Dortmund, and the Norway national team.

He is best known for his apt goalscoring skills, pace, and finishing capacity. He holds a Title for winning the Golden Boot with 9 goals in a match in the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup.

He didn’t join Dortmund until January 2020 and so far, he has scored 85 goals in 88 appearances for Dortmund. You would think he should be somewhere among the top five but keep reading.

As of the time of this post, Haaland is close to completing a move from Dortmund to Manchester City.

8. Kevin De Bruyne

Kevin De Bruyne is a Belgian footballer who is currently a midfielder for Manchester City. He is widely regarded as one of the pre-eminent midfielders in the world.

Some of his popular awards include the IFFHS Men’s World Team, the UEFA Team of the Year, the UEFA Champions League Squad of the Season, and the ESM Team among others.

The Belgium national team player has equally been featured as the IFFHS World’s Best Playmaker, UEFA Champions League Midfielder of the Season, the Bundesliga Player of the Year, and the Footballer of the Year.

7. Virgil van Dijk

Van Dijk is a professional footballer for Liverpool FC and the Netherlands national team. The 2019 Premier League champion is considered one of the world’s best defenders. So far, he has a premier league record of 195 appearances and 17 goals.

The Dutch player is a Centre-back player for both Liverpool and Netherlands national team. He is best appreciated for his strength on the field.

6. Mohamed Salah

Mo, as he is fondly called, is another star Liverpool player best appreciated for his speed and dribbling skills. Salah is also the captain of the Egypt national team.

Some of his awards include 2X African footballer of the year (2018, 2019), Top scorer in Premier League (2017/18 and 2018/19 with 32 and 22 goals respectively), TM-Player of the season (England 2018), FIFA PUSKÁS Award (2018), and his most recent Football Writers’ Association’s Footballer of the Year award (2022).

Mohamed is the sixth most rated footballer in the world.

5. Kylian Mbappe

Kylian Mbappé is a French professional footballer who currently plays for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) club and the France national team as a forward.

Mbappé’s professional career cannot be mentioned without making reference to the fact that he is the second most expensive player in the world. 

He has won several awards including the footballer of the year award (France, 2018), TM-Player of the season (France- 2917, 2019, 2020), World Cup Winner (France, 2018), and 5X French Champion among others.

Mbappe is the fifth most rated footballer in the world.

4. Karim Benzema

Karim Benzema is a French pro player and striker for Real Madrid and the French national team.

He is most appreciated for being one of the best forwards of his generation, needless to say, he has a lot of records to his name. A few to name are Ligue 1 top scorer: 2007-08, Bravo Award: 2008, French Cup top scorer: 2007-08, 4X FIFA Club World Cup winner (Real Madrid- 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018), and 5X Spanish Champion (Real Madrid- 2021/22 inclusive) among others.

Benzema is the fourth most rated footballer in the world.

3. Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo almost needs no introduction! The Portuguese footballer plays as a forward for Manchester United and is also captain of the Portugal national team.

Ronaldo has over 800 goals to his name and of course, various awards in the industry. Some of his awards are Best FIFA men’s player (2017), the famous Balon d’or (2008, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, among others), FIFA Best Special Award (2021), and many more.

Cristiano Ronaldo was the first player in history to conquer 10 UEFA trophies. He moved from Juventus to Manchester United in 2021.

2. Lionel Messi

Even some non-football fans know Lionel Messi. The Argentine professional footballer has moved from being an influential player to a very popular personality discussed outside the world of sports.

Asides the fact that Messi is often being compared to Ronaldo, he was equally transferred from Barcelona FC to Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in the same year (2021) Ronaldo moved from Juventus to Manchester United (more reason for comparison).

Messi is currently serving as captain of the Argentina national team.

His awards include: FIFA World Player of the Year (2009), UEFA Club Footballer of the Year (2009), Argentine Footballer of the Year (2015, 2016, 2017 among others in this category), and FIFA World Cup Golden Ball (2014) among others.

Messi is the second most rated footballer in the world.

1. Robert Lewandowski

Robert is a very popular and professional Polish footballer. He is currently part of the team Bayern Munich where he marks his game as a striker. He is also the captain of Poland’s national team.

Lewandowski is another player with an amazing track record. He has been part of teams like Poland U19, Poland U21, and Poland.

Some of his awards include Best FIFA Men’s Player (2020, 2022), and Best Player of the year in Poland (2011, 2012).

He is currently the most rated footballer in the world.