Cristiano Ronaldo equals insane record that’s stood since 1960 once held by former Arsenal star | OneFootball

Cristiano Ronaldo has just equalled an insane record that has stood since the 1960s, once held by a former Arsenal and Fulham star.

While most footballers tend to slow down when they reach the age of 30, Ronaldo has only become more prolific.

Staggeringly, he’s scored more goals since turning 30 than he managed before reaching that landmark.

Prior to celebrating his 30th in February 2015, CR7 scored 463 goals in 718 matches, averaging a strike every 122 minutes.

Since that point, he’s scored 493 goals, which has now put him into the history books alongside Ronnie Rooke.

For over 60 years, Rooke has solely held the record as the player with the most goals scored after turning 30, with 493 goals according to the RSSSF.

Ronaldo has now made history by equalling the record, following his latest brace against Al Akhdoud.

Other notable names who’ve scored more than 400 goals after turning 30 include Romario and Josef Bican, but Ronaldo has already surpassed their tallies.

In terms of Rooke, he celebrated his 30th birthday in 1941 and he continued to play football at various levels until he was around 50 years old in 1961.

After turning 30, he enjoyed stints with the likes of Arsenal and Crystal Palace, but he enjoyed his most prolific spell with Fulham.

Prior to the outbreak of the Second World War, he scored 57 goals in 87 league matches for Fulham, which is quite the record.

During the war, Rooke managed to continue playing, whilst simultaneously serving in the RAF. In total, he made 199 appearances in the wartime games for Fulham and scored an impressive 212 goals.

He then had spells with Arsenal and Crystal Palace before dropping down the leagues to play for the likes of Bedford Town, Haywards Heath Town and Addlestone.

Overall, he managed to score 493 goals after turning 30, which was a record that had stood strong since his retirement in 1961.

However, when there’s a record to be broken, Ronaldo is usually one of the first players on the scene to break it.

Indeed, the next milestone that he’ll be chasing is the first player to score 1000 official goals, which he’s now only 44 strikes away from.

“People, especially my family, say: ‘It’s time for you to stop. You’ve done everything. Why do you want to score a thousand goals?” Ronaldo told Canal 11 earlier in the year.

“But I don’t think so. I think I’m still producing good things, I’m helping my club and the national team, and why not keep going?

“I’m sure that when I finish, I’ll be fulfilled, because I gave it my all. I know I don’t have many more years, but the few I have, I try to enjoy to the fullest.”

With Al-Nassr currently going well in the Saudi Pro League and with a World Cup on the horizon, he’ll certainly have plenty of motivation heading into 2026.