Rodri has completed football’s most coveted quadruple, becoming only the sixth player in history to hold the World Cup, Champions League, European Championship and Ballon d’Or simultaneously. The Spain midfielder’s recent World Cup triumph adds the final piece to a trophy cabinet that already contained the 2023 Champions League, the 2024 European Championship and the 2024 Ballon d’Or.
An elite lineage
The Spaniard joins a select group that began with West Germany’s Franz Beckenbauer and Gerd Müller, who achieved the feat on the same day in 1974. The Bayern Munich pair entered that year’s World Cup final against the Netherlands having already secured the European Championship in 1972 and the European Cup in 1974. Müller scored the winner in the 2-1 final victory on 7 July 1974, with both men having already claimed the Ballon d’Or—Müller in 1970 and Beckenbauer in 1972.
Nearly three decades passed before Zinedine Zidane matched the achievement in 2002. The French maestro’s stunning volley in the Champions League final for Real Madrid completed his set, which included the 1998 World Cup, Euro 2000 and the 1998 Ballon d’Or.
Brazilian duo Rivaldo and Ronaldinho followed, though both carry minor caveats. Rivaldo was an unused substitute for Milan in the 2003 Champions League final against Juventus despite playing throughout the competition, while Ronaldinho did not feature in the 1999 Copa América final for Brazil. Lionel Messi completed the set with Argentina‘s 2022 World Cup victory, having won his first Champions League with Barcelona in 2006 and the Ballon d’Or in 2009.
Speed and exclusivity
Only Beckenbauer claimed all four honours within a shorter timeframe, achieving the quadruple within two years. Rodri’s spanned from 2023 to 2026.
The achievement remains elusive in the women’s game, largely because the Ballon d’Or Féminin is only seven editions old. Barcelona stars Alexia Putellas and Aitana Bonmatí have won five of those between them and possess both World Cup and Champions League winners’ medals, but must wait until the 2029 European Championship for their opportunity to complete the set. Megan Rapinoe, the 2019 Ballon d’Or Féminin winner, also holds a World Cup and Concacaf W Championship title, though a continental club championship never materialised during her career.
World Cup records rewritten
The recent tournament also produced significant assist records. France‘s Michael Olise set a new benchmark for a single World Cup with seven assists in 2026, surpassing Pelé’s six from 1970. Meanwhile, Lionel Messi extended his all-time record to 12 World Cup assists across his career from 2006 to 2026, moving clear of Diego Maradona’s eight.