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On 30 September 2015, Ronaldo scored a brace (2 goals) during a Champions League match against Swedish side Malmö to surpass 500 career goals and become Real Madrid's joint all-time top goalscorer, equalling Raúl's record of 323 goals. He surpassed that record with a goal against Levante on 17 October 2015.
The 2015–16 season started with Ronaldo scoring five goals against Espanyol to overtake Raúl's La Liga tally for Real Madrid,[191] before scoring twice against Malmö in the Champions League to equal Raúl's overall total of 323 goals,[192] the first of which was his 500th career goal.[193] Raúl described Ronaldo as "incredible".[194] Ronaldo surpassed Raúl's overall goalscoring record on 17 October 2015, scoring the second goal in a 3–0 La Liga win for Real Madrid at home against Levante to take his overall tally to 324 goals.[195]
On 8 December 2015, Ronaldo set a Champions League record of 11 goals in the group stage after scoring four goals against Malmö.[196] His four-goal haul equalled a club record in the competition, jointly held by Alfredo Di Stéfano, Ferenc Puskás, and Hugo Sánchez.[197]
Awards and records
World's best player awards
Awards ceremonies to crown the world's best player were held annually since 1956, when the inaugural Ballon d'Or awarding took place. The Ballon d'Or was presented to the player who had been voted to have performed the best over the previous year, and was established by French journalist Gabriel Hanot. Originally, votes could only be awarded to European players before a 1995 rule change. In the voting for the 2004 Ballon d'Or, Cristiano Ronaldo received his first votes, finishing in joint 12th with Milan Baroš on 11 points.[203] In 2005 he received three points,[204] and in 2006 received five points, the same year Messi earned his first votes, finishing with three points.[205]
The FIFA World Player of the Year was established in 1991. In the voting for the 2004 FIFA World Player of the Year, Ronaldo received his first votes, finishing 13th with 45 points. In 2005 he received 13 points, and in 2006 received 69 points. Messi received his first votes in 2007. Both players dominated the voting
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