Study Finds Left‑Right Split in Preference for Messi and Ronaldo

Overview

• Researchers collected 10,661 online responses from 26 countries between April and May 2026 and posted the analysis on PsyPost on June 5.
• The main result shows left-leaning respondents tended to favor Lionel Messi while more conservative respondents tended to favor Cristiano Ronaldo, with political ideology the single strongest individual predictor in the models.
• The paper ties those preferences to psychological traits, associating Messi with collective-oriented and more reflective traits and Ronaldo with dominance, self-promotion, higher self‑esteem and greater short‑video consumption.
• Country-level patterns varied: Argentina showed the strongest tilt toward Messi, Indonesia toward Ronaldo, and Brazil’s sample was essentially balanced between the two players.
• Authors and outlets stress the findings are preliminary because the study is not peer reviewed, uses self-reported survey data, and reports only moderate effect sizes, so the results require cautious interpretation and further study.