Top 10 Best Strikers in the World - 2025 (Ranked)

In football, there are two types of strikers; the first ones are those who score goals, and then, there are number 9s who put the ball past the net for fun. Now that we have started this piece with a seemingly philosophical talk, it's time to take a look at best strikers in the world and put all the football fans at ease who understandably scratch their heads when this topic comes into the picture.
A striker nowadays is expected to lead the press & get involved in link-up play as well along with scoring goals. For some fans, it can be PSG star Ousmane Dembele topping the list & for some, it can be either Mbappe or Harry Kane. Hence, we experts at Sportsdunia's football desk have decided to adapt to this evolution of the no.9 role. In this way, our readers can understand the unique insights provided in our list of the top 10 best strikers in the world.

List of Best Strikers in the World

Since the 2025/26 football season has just started, we have taken the overall 2024/25 season stats + FIFA Club World Cup stats as major ranking factors to decide the best striker in the world. There were numerous footballers, both experienced and prodigies, who made us jump off our seats with their goalscoring exploits. As a result, after hours of exhaustive research, along with considering expert opinions, we found that only a handful of those can be called best strikers in the world, as shown below:

How We Ranked the Best Striker in the World 2025?

*Note: Stats of the best striker in the world 2025 are taken from reliable sources such as Sportsdunia & fbref

Who is the Best Striker in the World 2025?

If you are reading this section of the article, then it's obvious you already came across our list of best strikers in the world. We have shortlisted among an exhaustive list of players who are genuine no.9s, or best right wingers in the world (At last, Dembele is among the best), or best left wingers in the world (Unsurprisingly, Mbappe made the list as well) who put up a brilliant performance while leading the line. In the end, we trimmed the list down to 10 as shared below.

10) Julian Alvarez (Atletico Madrid)

After playing as a back-up forward to Erling Haaland during his stint at Manchester City, World Cup winner Julian Alvarez has found his groove after signing for Atletico Madrid in 2024. His ability to stretch the opposition defence by linking up with midfield and creating spaces for fellow attackers separates him from others & as a result, he earned himself a place in the list of best strikers in the world. Last season, he scored an impressive 29 goals and provided 7 assists for Los Colchoneros.

Time will tell for how long he will stay at Atletico Madrid, since multiple reports are claiming that he is regretting his move due to the club's lack of ambition. But nevertheless, it doesn't take away the fact that his stock has gone up thanks to his goalscoring exploits.

9) Serhou Guirassy (Borussia Dortmund)

Sure, wonderkids in football are fun to watch, as we are all obsessed with “youngest this” and "youngest that", but late bloomers are even better, especially if they possess the calibre of Borussia Dortmund no. 9 Serhou Guirassy. What a journey he has been through!! Till the age of 24, he was a nobody playing for Amiens in France, & only 61 goals in the next 6 seasons followed before a loan move to VfB Stuttgart ahead of the 2022/23 season (which later became permanent in 2023). Since then, he has been unsettling opposition defences week after week by scoring 72 goals in 83 games for Stuttgart & now Dortmund.

Despite their well-documented inconsistency over the years, Borussia Dortmund always had a knack for recruiting some of the best number 9s in the game at bargain prices, which include the likes of Lewandowski & Haaland as well. Guirassy continued that tradition as he delivered a debut season to remember by scoring 34 goals in all competitions, including 13 in the Champions League, where they narrowly lost out to Barcelona in the quarter-finals. Guirassy won the Golden Boot in the UCL alongside Raphinha. He carried his rich vein of form in the FIFA Club World Cup, by scoring 4 goals during BVB's run till the quarter-finals, and started the 2025/26 Bundesliga season by scoring 3 goals in 2 matches already. The fact that even the Bayern Munich legend Lothar Matthaus praised him (as shared below) while speaking on Sky Sports showcases how incredible he is.

“I said two years ago that he is a striker for Bayern Munich. His speed, his power and his assertiveness make him strong. For me he is one of the best strikers in Europe. He showed that during his last year in Stuttgart, and now he is showing it in the league and in the Champions League.”

8) Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan)

After joining Inter Milan, the Argentine talisman Lautaro Martinez has become a key cog of their team, which reached 2 Champions League finals and won Serie A two times. Due to his ability to consistently score goals and deliver in key matches, he is worthy of being considered as best striker in the world. He scored an impressive 21 goals in the 2024/25 campaign for the Nerazzurri, and if not for an injury that impacted his form in the closing stages of the campaign, he would have scored even more.

Lautaro led his team from the front as their captain, but couldn't defend their Serie A title, and to rub salt into the wounds, they faced a crushing 5-0 defeat at the hands of PSG in the Champions League final and ended the calendar year without a trophy. Hence, in our list of best strikers in the world, he is ranked 8th.

7) Erling Haaland (Manchester City)

It goes without saying that some of the best number 9s are the ones who keep on delivering consistently, even if their team is going through a poor run of form. It might sound strange at first, but this was the recurring theme for Norwegian no.9 Erling Haaland & Manchester City last season, when the club was performing well below their usual standards thanks to tactical shortcomings and injuries.

Even the best striker in Premier League couldn't prevent the Cityzens from experiencing a below-par season during which they only managed to win the Community Shield. However, Haaland was still able to score a respectable 41 goals in all competitions. He has continued showing why he should not be ruled out from the race to determine best striker in the world by scoring hattrick in the opening fixture of EPL 2025-26.

6) Alexander Isak (Liverpool)

Some strikers in the world are feared due to their goal-scoring instincts, then there is Swedish striker Alexander Isak, who is known for his lethal finishing as well as his movement with the ball, which has led to him drawing comparisons with peak Thierry Henry. He played a key role in ending Magpies' trophy drought when they beat Liverpool 2-1 in the Carabao Cup final. Not only did he score the winning goal, but he also constantly unrattled the usually unshakable Virgil Van Dijk.

Recently, during the final hours of the transfer window, he became Liverpool's newest recruit after a long, tumultuous saga and ended up becoming the most expensive transfer in Premier League history. It's a statement signing from the Reds as they will rely on Isak's threat in the penalty box and graceful movements with the ball to retain the Premier League title and go to the latter stages of the Champions League.

5) Viktor Gyokeres (Arsenal)

Since 2023, there has been one striker who has been putting up eye-catching numbers in Europe, and his name is Victor Gyokeres. His 99 goals in just 102 appearances during his stay in Sporting Lisbon across 2 seasons convinced Arsenal to spend €65.8M to acquire his services. There are critics who point out the fact that Liga Portugal is not a big league and he was a beneficiary of Amorim's system. But even if we assume these facts as true, it can't be ignored that he scored a hattrick against Manchester City in the UCL and continued to thrive even when Amorim left for Manchester United.

His consistent performances led him to represent his country frequently where he continues to perform as one of the best Swedish football players alongside Isak. Granted, he has his weaknesses when it comes to being an aerial threat or coming up against low blocks, but he is one of the best finishers in the world, nevertheless, inside the penalty area.

4) Harry Kane (Bayern Munich)

Every season, it goes without saying that Bayern Munich no.9 Harry Kane will always be seen as one of the best strikers in the world due to his never-ending goal-scoring exploits. The England skipper has taken the Bundesliga by storm since he arrived in 2023, as he maintained his knack of scoring goals for fun and thus ended up winning the Golden Boot (a.k.a Torjägerkanone) in the past 2 seasons. He scored 44 goals in his debut season with the Rekordmeister, but had to wait for another year when he again scored a whopping 41 goals in all competitions & ended up winning the Bundesliga and thus his first ever major trophy in the process.

Even the Arsenal fans know since his North London derby days, how dangerous Kane is with and without the ball. His ability to drop deep into the midfield and win the ball always unsettles the opponents, as he is pretty good at creating goal-scoring opportunities for his teammates as well. The fact that he has already scored 5 goals in 2 Bundesliga matches this season, including a hat-trick against RB Leipzig further indicates that the storm named “Kane” is not going to stop anytime soon.

3) Robert Lewandowski (FC Barcelona)

Even at the age of 37, Polish striker Robert Lewandowski does what he knows best; and that is scoring goals for fun. After an unexpected underwhelming 1st season at Barcelona, he rediscovered his form, which has instilled fear into numerous defenders over the years under the tutelage of Hansi Flick. He scored 42 goals in all competitions, including 32 in La Liga. If not for the injury he suffered at the closing stages of the campaign, Barca might have won the UCL, and he could have won the European Golden Shoe, which was eventually won by Kylian Mbappe.

Along with Lamine Yamal and Raphinha, he tormented opposition teams. Even Real Madrid couldn't cope with his threat as he scored a brace in a memorable 4-0 win at Bernabeu, and in the end, completed a treble of domestic trophies. Had Barcelona gone into the final of UCL and won it, he could have been leading the Ballon d'Or race, but nevertheless, he deserves to be one of the best strikers in the world.

2) Ousmane Dembélé (PSG)

Ousmane Dembele had a topsy-turvy 2024/25 season with PSG as he almost had a falling out with manager Luis Enrique by the end of 2024. But as soon as 2025 started, the world started to see a different version of Dembele as a change in tactics of Luis Enrique led to his role being changed to seemingly that of a striker from his usual position as a right winger. Though initially questions were asked if a player of his nature could lead a star-studded Parisans lineup, it was all put to rest as he ended the season with 34 goals & 14 assists in all competitions.

The results started to click in, and PSG were not only able to win all the domestic trophies, but also won their 1st ever Champions League by demolishing Inter Milan 5-0 in possibly the most one-sided final in history. Dembele caused havoc among the opposition by maximising the threat all over the pitch and scored and created goals for fun. As a result, he is poised to win the Ballon d'Or this year, according to most of the experts, cementing his position as the best striker in the world.

1) Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid)

Now we are going to talk about the Real Madrid attacker Kylian Mbappe, the best striker in the world according to our list. Some of the readers might see this decision as debatable since France's all-time top goalscorer only won an UEFA Super Cup, seemingly couldn't help his team win La Liga or progress further in UCL, but in fairness, he has performed in one area for which strikers are judged the most, and that's goals. He scored 42 goals in all competitions and pipped Gyokeres & Lewandowski to win the European Golden Shoe, which is awarded to the best striker across Major European domestic leagues.

Hence, Mbappe is ranked here as the best striker in the world, ranking above other no.9s who won more in terms of trophies but missed out on a few goals.