GOAL’s World-Class Club 2024: Lionel Messi’s membership is revoked but Jude Bellingham earns his first invite to football’s most exclusive fraternity | Goal.com US

World-class… It’s an invisible but important tag, one that separates the good from the great. But it’s such a subjective term. Every football fan has their own definition, their own set of criterion, leading to endless but thoroughly enjoyable debates in stadiums, dressing rooms, cafes, bars, pubs and clubs all across the world.

So, last summer, GOAL decided to get in on the fun by compiling a very exclusive list of the 25 players that we felt represented the game’s elite, the best of the best, the guys that had been producing stellar performances over a sustained period of time.

In order to avoid focusing solely on attackers – which, let’s face it, nearly always happens when it comes to individual awards and accolades – we stipulated that there must be at least three players from each position group (goalkeeper, defence, midfield and attack), but a maximum of nine from each.

Now, the time has arrived to decide to gets to stay in the World-Class Club – and who must be politely asked to leave. So, who’s made this year’s 25 strong-list? Find out below, and be sure to express your approval – or outrage – in the comments…