Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo breaks men's international goalscoring record
With 111 goals, Cristiano Ronaldo has become the all-time leading scorer in international football.
On 109 goals, the Portugal captain was tied with former Iranian scorer Ali Daei heading into Wednesday's World Cup qualifier.
However, Ronaldo went ahead of Daei when he equalized for Portugal against the Republic of Ireland in the 89th minute.
Minutes later, the Portuguese striker scored his 111th goal to give his team a 2-1 victory.
After making his international debut in 2003, the 36-year-old Ronaldo broke the record in his 180th game for Portugal.
Daei, on the other hand, scored 109 goals in 149 appearances for Iran between 1993 and 2006. The two guys are the only male players in history to achieve 100 goals for their respective countries.
Christine Sinclair, a 38-year-old Canadian striker who scored her 187th international goal on the way to gold at the Tokyo Olympics last month, holds the record.
Ronaldo, who won his lone UEFA European Championship with Portugal in 2016, was the tournament's leading scorer with five goals.
He also broke the record set by French striker Michel Platini, becoming the first player to score in five separate editions of the competition.
With 134 goals, Ronaldo is the all-time leading scorer in the UEFA Champions League, 14 more than Lionel Messi.
On Wednesday, he came close to breaking the international scoring record but had a penalty saved in the 15th minute.
"I'm extremely delighted," Ronaldo said after the game, "not just because I broke the record, but also because of the great moments we had."
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