Ronaldo did win the 2008 Ballon d'Or and the Premier League and Champions League with Manchester United that season, scoring in the Champions League final against Chelsea. But the claim that Messi "voted Cristiano Ronaldo 2008 for the B.O.A.T award" is inaccurate; in the 2008 Ballon d'Or voting Messi finished second as a player, and players do not vote in the Ballon d'Or (it was voted on by journalists at the time).
Listed honours are essentially accurate: Messi has MLS and La Liga titles, Ronaldo has Premier League, Serie A and Saudi Pro League titles, and Ronaldo leads Messi 5-4 in Champions League titles. But the list omits that Messi won 10 La Liga titles to Ronaldo's 2, and omits Messi's Ligue 1 titles at PSG. The framing is selectively chosen.
There is no UFC fighter named Jean-Paul Lebosnoyani (or any close spelling), and no UFC Fight Night occurred in Las Vegas on October 31 with that matchup. This appears to be fabricated. This is opinion. The listed Ballon d'Or winners — Ronaldo in 2008, 2016 and 2017; Messi in 2012 and 2023 — are correct as a factual matter, but the ranking is subjective. This is a promotional/engagement post from Formula 1 about the Mexico Grand Prix with no factual claim to check. This is an announcement post from Formula 1 about the upcoming Sao Paulo Grand Prix in Brazil. No factual claim to check.
MRonaldo fans are out in FORCE tonight, and one post wants to crown him the best player in the history of every single league on Earth.
LEvery league? He only played in three of the big ones. That's not a hot take, that's a geography fail.
MWhizz on X posted the list — best in Premier League history, Ronaldo. Best in La Liga history, Ronaldo. Best in Serie A history, Ronaldo. Best in League One history... Ronaldo.
LLeague One? That's the English third division! The guy never played a single minute in France, let alone the lower leagues.
MAnd that's my whole problem with this argument. You can't be the best player in a league you never even showed up to.
LBut come on, you know what they mean. Ronaldo is the only guy who has won the title in England, Spain, AND Italy, plus the Champions League five times. Nobody else has that resume.
MOkay, but La Liga Ronaldo for five seasons versus Messi who played there for fifteen years and won it TEN times to Ronaldo's two. Ten!
LRonaldo went to Spain and beat prime Messi's Barcelona to the title twice while scoring 311 goals in 292 games. That's a goal a game, in the hardest league on Earth.
MYou want to have a real debate? Fine. Champions League history, Ronaldo has five, Messi has four. But Messi won more titles, more Ballon d'Ors, and actually played in France just like he played everywhere else—dominating.
LDominating France? The PSG years were the quietest of Messi's career. Ronaldo reinventing himself at 37 in Saudi Arabia is more impressive than anything Messi did in Ligue 1.
MOh, so now Saudi Pro League titles matter? Ronaldo fans never cared about that league until he signed there.
LFine, I'll give you this: Messi is the best La Liga player ever, and that's the most competitive league there is. But Ronaldo won in three different countries AND five Champions Leagues. Overall, Ronaldo's career is unmatched.
MAnd I'll give you this: Ronaldo at Manchester United in 2008 was the single greatest individual season I've ever seen. He was unplayable.
LSee? You just made my point with your own mouth.
MI said greatest season, not greatest career. Big difference.
LYou're impossible, man. Impossible.
MAnother Ronaldo fan posted the full trophy cabinet and asked how Messi has more Ballon d'Ors. And that's the beauty of this argument—it never goes away. We'll be having it in nursing homes.
LSpeaking of people fighting online, a post claimed that an Armenian-American fighter named Jean-Paul Lebosnoyani knocked out an unbeaten Azerbaijani fighter at a UFC Fight Night in Vegas on October 31.
MStrings of names in a fight post? My radar is up.
LYour radar should be screaming. I checked the UFC events for that date. There was no Fight Night in Vegas, and no fighter by that name.
MSo either this is a fake fight, a real fight in a different promotion, or some AI fever dream from the internet.
LThis is the problem with sports X right now. Fake hot takes I can handle, but apparently fabricated fight results trying to build a fake hype train? That's garbage.
MListen, if you're an MMA fan and you see a result you don't recognize, check the official site. It took me seconds to see that fight doesn't appear to be real.
LMinutes ago, the Formula 1 Telegram posted that it's race week and they're heading to Brazil for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
MNow THAT's a real fight. Interlagos is a track where champions are made. Senna's home, rain chaos, a race that actually rewards bravery.
LAnd after the Mexico Grand Prix cinematic recap they posted, the championship storyline is on fire. Verstappen versus the field, McLaren pushing Ferrari... every weekend matters now.
MThat's what I love about this time of year. NBA just started, NFL hitting its stride, Formula 1 title fight in Brazil, and soccer fans still relitigating Ronaldo versus Messi from 2012.
LThe internet never sleeps, so neither do we. More calls coming up, more arguments to settle. We're just getting started.