The prospect of a footballer turning 30 is sometimes seen as a kiss of death, with some faltering as they age and their careers begin to wind down.<\/p>\n
But for some players, their careers continue on the same track for years after, and some even get better the longer they are in the game.<\/p>\n
Some of the best goalscorers in the history of world football have continued banging in goals post-30.<\/p>\n
Here, we have looked into the 12 players with the most goals after their 30th birthday.<\/p>\n
1. Ronnie Rooke \u2013 493 goals<\/strong><\/p>\n Rooke played a lot of his football after the age of 30. His most prolific spell came at Arsenal, following the Second World War, where he scored 70 goals in 94 appearances.<\/p>\n That level of goalscoring was remarkable given Rooke joined the club as a 35-year-old.<\/p>\n His total tally of goals after the age of 30 was 493, and it could have been more had the War not gotten in the way.<\/p>\n 2. Cristiano Ronaldo \u2013 485 goals<\/strong><\/p>\n A modern-day legend and one of the best footballers to ever grace the pitch, Ronaldo<\/strong><\/a> is widely regarded as the greatest goalscorer of all time, racking up close to 950 goals, and he\u2019s still playing.<\/p>\n The 40-year-old has spent the last 10 years banging in goals, as he did in the years prior.<\/p>\n Since turning 30, Ronaldo has netted 485 goals, and is likely to overtake Rooke at some point in 2025-26.<\/p>\n 3. Romario \u2013 451 goals<\/strong><\/p>\n Romario had a long career, eventually retiring at 43 years of age, before having a brief stint out of retirement again.<\/p>\n One of the best goalscorers in the world, the Brazilian found the net a lot after the age of 30. Indeed, 451 of his career goals came after his 30th birthday.<\/p>\n 4. Josef Bican \u2013 466 goals<\/strong><\/p>\n Bican had a long and illustrious career, in which he won a number of trophies in Austria.<\/p>\n After the age of 30, the Czech forward totalled 446 goals, though with incomplete records, it\u2019s suggested he might have scored more than that.<\/p>\n 5. Joseph Smith \u2013 379 goals<\/strong><\/p>\n At one point the top scorer in world football, Smith is said to have bagged over 600 times during his career.<\/p>\n Around half of his goals came after the age of 30, with Smith believed to have scored 379 goals after that age, though that again could have been higher.<\/p>\n 6. Otto Harder \u2013 373 goals<\/strong><\/p>\n Harder\u2019s career took place prior to the First World War, and he\u2019s believed to have scored 373 goals after the age of 30.<\/p>\n At age 36, he once scored 12 goals in a match.<\/p>\n 7. Erwin Helmchen \u2013 360 goals<\/strong><\/p>\n Part of Helmchen\u2019s career took place between the two World Wars, and it then continued after the second of them.<\/p>\n As a result, he spent a good period of time playing past the age of 30, and he racked up 360 \u2013 or more \u2013 goals during those years.<\/p>\n 8. Zlatan Ibrahimovic \u2013 346 goals<\/strong><\/p>\n One of modern football\u2019s greatest strikers, Ibrahimovic was equally as good post-30 as he was before he hit that age.<\/p>\n Ibrahimovic was 30 when he joined Paris Saint-Germain, and there he scored 156 goals.<\/p>\n In all, after turning 30, the Swede bagged 346 goals, also playing for Manchester United, LA Galaxy and AC Milan as well as Sweden.<\/p>\n 9. Tom Waring \u2013 330 goals<\/strong><\/p>\n Aston Villa legend Waring played for the club in a successful time in their history.<\/p>\n He had success of his own, scoring 330 goals after he turned 30.<\/p>\n 10. Robert Lewandowski \u2013 330 goals<\/strong><\/p>\n Lewandowski has banged in goals for two of Europe\u2019s biggest clubs since he turned 30. His last few seasons at Bayern Munich he was above that age, and he has since moved on to play for Barcelona.<\/p>\n At Barca alone, the Polish star has 105 goals to his name, and his total tally since passing 30 currently stands at 330, meaning he\u2019s about to surpass Waring.<\/p>\n 11. Abe Lenstra \u2013 328 goals<\/strong><\/p>\n Given that Lenstra was mainly a winger rather than a striker, the amount of goals he scored was very impressive.<\/p>\n Throughout his career he had a knack of finding the net, and after the age of 30, he did so 328 times.<\/p>\n 12. Lionel Messi \u2013 321 goals<\/strong><\/p>\n Messi<\/strong><\/a> might not be playing football for much longer, but he\u2019s likely to make his way a little further up this list before he hangs up his boots.<\/p>\n So far, after the age of 30, the Argentine superstar has 321 goals to his name. It\u2019s unsurprising that three of his eight Ballon d\u2019Ors have come since he turned that age, too.<\/p>\n He\u2019s not done nearly as well in front of goal as career rival Ronaldo since turning 30, though the Portuguese is two years his senior.<\/p>\n READ NEXT<\/strong>: The 15 footballers with 700+ career goals: Cristiano Ronaldo 3rd, Lionel Messi 5th, Pele 11th\u2026<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n