Most assists in the Champions League: Cristiano Ronaldo leads the way

Cristiano Ronaldo is officially the greatest provider in UEFA Champions League history after supplying 42 assists in the world's top club competition.

In his 183 games in the competition, the Portuguese forward scored a record 140 goals but also laid on a good number for his team-mates: 182 goal involvements in total. His former Real Madrid clubmate Ángel Di María is second in the all-time assist rankings with 41, one ahead of Lionel Messi, who played alongside Di María at Paris. Messi scored 129 goals which in addition to his 40 assists gives him a total of 169 direct involvements.

Unlike Ronaldo and Messi, Di María has delivered significantly more assists than goals in the competition – he has scored 24. "To score goals is nice, but I much prefer giving assists," the Argentinian said in a 2021 interview. "It makes me much happier. Giving an assist, I feel that I'm happy and my team-mate is happy too for having scored, so I prefer it. Every time I give an assist I feel great joy."

There is a seven-assist gap between the top three and the chasing pack in terms of assists, with Brazilian forward Neymar fourth in the overall rankings with 33 in just 81 Champions League appearances. He scored 43 goals in that total, meaning he had an average goal involvement of nearly one per game in Europe's top club competition.

Who has the most UEFA Champions League assists?

42: Cristiano Ronaldo (183 games – Manchester United, Real Madrid, Juventus)
41: Ángel Di María (116 games – Benfica, Real Madrid, Paris, Juventus)
40: Lionel Messi (163 games – Barcelona, Paris)
33: Neymar (81 games – Barcelona, Paris)
30: Ryan Giggs (141 games – Manchester United)
30: Xavi Hernández (151 games – Barcelona)
29: Andrés Iniesta (130 games – Barcelona)
29: Karim Benzema (152 games – Lyon, Real Madrid)
29: Thomas Müller (160 games – Bayern)

Last updated: 10 March 2025