World Cup Winning Stars without a Champions League Medal

Despite clinching a World Cup title, these players never had the chance to lift the Champions League trophy.

Winning the World Cup is the ultimate dream for any football player that has high aspirations. Nothing can compare to representing your country on the international stage, as you are cheered by an entire nation and millions more from around the globe. A footballer that achieves this will forever have his name recorded in the history books and will be viewed upon as a national hero in his respective country.

• Ronaldo won the World Cup twice
• Romario scored over 1,000 goals (friendlied included)
• Buffon and Totti played alongside each other in 2006

Although some stars have the extreme fortune to do just that, they have never laid their hands on a European Cup, which is considered to be the most prestigious trophy in football right after a World title. Some of the notable players that will feature on our list include Ronaldo, Romario, Buffon and Totti.

Ronaldo

Ronaldo Luis Nazario de Lima, or “O Fenomeno” as he often called, will always be remembered as one of the best players that has ever graced the football pitch. In his prime he was unstoppable and was perhaps the players to claim superstar status in the new millennium. At only 17 years old he participated in the 1994 World Cup, where he ended up with a winner’s medal without playing a single game for the Brazilian national side.

At the age of 25 he led his country to their 5th World Cup title in 2002 Korea and Japan. His performances throughout the tournament were astonishing as he managed to clinch an incredible 8 goals and thus help secure the prestigious trophy. Soon after that Real Madrid snapped him up for a world record fee of around EUR 45 million, according to online sportsbooks in Spain.

He continued his impressive form over the following years, however he never was given the opportunity to grab the elusive Champions League title. In early 2007, Ronaldo was bought by AC Milan and it just so happened that in that season they were crowned European champions. Unfortunately, the popular “No. 9” was ineligible to play in Europe at that time as he was still registered to Real Madrid for that season.

Romario

Romario de Souza Faria was destined to be a star since he was a young boy. He started his playing career with Vasco da Gama and after impressing at his local club, Dutch side PSV decided to sign him in 1988. Gambling news report that he spent a total of 5 years at PSV where he excelled in his role as the main attacking threat. After his time was up he transferred to Barcelona in 1993, however his time with the Catalan giants was short lived as he spent there only 2 seasons in which he scored an overall of 39 goals.

Due to his supernatural skills and knowledge on the ball he was selected to represent his country in the 1994 World Cup held in the USA. After many years without success on the international stage, Brazil lifted their 4th title in that tournament. Romario was also awarded the World Cup Golden Ball for his tremendous efforts in the competition, however the biggest European trophy was missing from his cabinet. He joined Barcelona in the summer of 1993 and in 1994 they reached the final, however they lost the match 4-0 against AC Milan. In the end he never had the chance to place his hands on the elite prize.

Buffon and Totti

Gianluigi Buffon is a legendary goalkeeper that has been at the top for quite some time. He joined Juventus from Parma in 2001 for a reported figure of EUR 50 million and boy was he worth the investment. He represented his nation at the 2006 World Cup in Germany, where they defeated France on penalties in an epic final. However, just like previous players on this list he also never graced the Champions League trophy. He might get a chance if Juventus beat Barcelona in Berlin, however mobile betting sites do not agree with that outcome.

Francesco Totti is another World Cup winner and an iconic footballer that is known for his loyalty to AS Roma. He could have transferred to other clubs on many occasions, however he chose not to and instead decided to stick with his boyhood club. Many online sportsbooks believe that is reason why he didn’t claim a Champions League medal. Had he switched to another club, he could have potentially done much better.