Every Record Cristiano Ronaldo Broke With His World Cup Brace

Cristiano Ronaldo’s two-goal performance in Portugal’s win vs. Uzbekistan at Houston Stadium on Tuesday wasn’t just a personal statement; it was FIFA World Cup history. Ronaldo added to his incredible stats as the all-time leader in international goals (145) and international appearances (230), but even at 41 years old, Ronaldo is still breaking records at his sixth World Cup. Here is every record Ronaldo broke with his two-goal outing against Uzbekistan: The First To Six With his first goal against Uzbekistan, Cristiano Ronaldo became the first player, man or woman, to score in six different World Cups. Ronaldo was previously in an exclusive club with women’s soccer legends Marta (Brazil) and Christine Sinclair (Canada) as the only players to score in five different World Cups. Now, Ronaldo stands alone. The only men’s player that could have accomplished this feat is Ronaldo’s longtime rival Lionel Messi, who has played in six different men’s World Cups but failed to score in 2010. Formiga (Brazil) and Homare Sawa (Japan) played in six different Women’s World Cups. Passing Eusébio With his second goal, Ronaldo passed Eusébio to become Portugal’s all-time leading goalscorer at the World Cup with 10. Eusébio has held the record since the 1966 World Cup in England, where he scored nine goals and won the Golden Boot en route to a bronze-meal finish with Portugal. His ninth goal — a penalty against the Soviet Union — would be his last at a World Cup, as Portugal failed to qualify for the 1970 and 1974 editions of the tournament. Oldest Brace Ronaldo, 41, is now the oldest player to score a brace (two goals in one game) at a World Cup. The record is just a day old, with Lionel Messi (age 38) setting it with a record-breaking brace of his own against Austria on Monday. Prior to this back-and-forth between the two generational talents, the record was held by Cameroon legend Roger Milla, who had a brace at the 1990 World Cup in Italy, also at age 38.