Ronaldo yet to break all-time scoring record, Czech FA claims
The Czech Football Association has disputed claims that Cristiano Ronaldo broke the all-time goal-scoring record, insisting he needs another 62 to surpass Josef Bican’s tally.
The Czech Football Association has disputed claims that Juventus striker Cristiano Ronaldo broke the all-time goal-scoring record on Wednesday, insisting he needs another 62 to surpass Josef Bican’s tally.
Ronaldo scored his 760th career goal in Juve’s 2-0 Italian Supercup win over Napoli and was hailed by several media outlets as the most prolific scorer in the history of the game, having beaten Austro-Czech striker Bican’s supposed total of 759.
But the Czech FA says Bican's total is actually 821 goals, following a review of his career statistics. "The History and Statistics committee of the Czech FA counted all the goals scored by the legendary Josef Bican and we can declare he scored 821 goals in official matches," read a tweet by the Czech FA.
A statement on the local governing body's official website broke down the number of goals scored by Bican for club and country in a career that spanned 24 years from 1931 to 1955.
"Goals from matches in the first and second leagues, national cups, the Central European (International) Cup and national team selections are included,” read the statement. “On the contrary, friendly matches are not included in the statistics, with the exception of the national team. It can be stated with full seriousness that this is a number that corresponds to the current state of the possibility of verifying all data, so it is the most accurate number possible."
The all-time top goal-scorer title is much contested, and soccer's world governing body FIFA does not keep an official record. Brazilian strikers Pele and Romario scored in excess of 1,000 goals during their careers, but those statistics include strikes in amateur, unofficial and friendly matches.