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The European Golden Boot is awarded to the highest goalscorers across domestic leagues in Europe every season. It was introduced in the 1967-68 season and was known as the Soulier d'Or. Portuguese forward Eusebio was the first player ever to receive the award after scoring 40 goals in all competitions for SL Benfica.
The European Golden Boot award puts into consideration a couple of factors, including the number of goals scored and the league's point value, to determine the winner.
Goals scored in Europe's top five leagues are multiplied by a factor of two, while goals scored in leagues six to 21 are multiplied by a factor of 1.5. Meanwhile, goals scored in any other league are multiplied by a factor of one.
Being one of the most prestigious individual accolades in the sport, it comes as no surprise that the European Golden Boot always produces intense competition. With the finest attackers on the continent going head-to-head for the prize, you can always expect the race to be nothing short of exciting.
The award has given us unforgettable memories over the years. Many players have mesmerized us with their unbelievable exploits in front of goal and won the award in stunning fashion.
In line with that, we've decided to rank the five best European Golden Boot-winning seasons in football history.
#5 Ronaldo Nazario: 1996-97
Ronaldo Nazario joined Barcelona in the summer of 1996 on a transfer worth €15 million. The legendary striker went on a full rampage immediately after landing at Camp Nou. He destroyed even the most organized defenses in La Liga with his incredible goalscoring knack.
Unfortunately, Ronaldo couldn't wear the Blaugrana jersey for long as he left the club to join Serie A outfit Inter Milan after just one season. However, he managed to prove his worth and won the hearts of many fans in that sole campaign.
Ronaldo bagged an incredible 34 goals for Barcelona in 37 La Liga games in the 1996-97 season. That earned him the prestigious European Golden Boot in 1997.
#4 Thierry Henry: 2003-04
In 2003-04, Arsenal made history by becoming the first and only Premier League club to win the title without tasting defeat throughout the course of the campaign. The Gunners had a number of top performers during the season, but Thierry Henry was on another level.
The Frenchman was a beast in front of goal, finding the back of the net almost at will and giving Arsene Wenger's men a massive boost upfront.
That season, Henry contributed a whopping 30 goals and nine assists for Arsenal in 37 Premier League games.
The Gunners icon claimed the EPL Golden Boot that year. He also won the European Golden Boot. It was, without a doubt, one of the brightest seasons of his highly decorated career.
#3 Luis Suarez: 2015-16
Barcelona were on the verge of losing their lead at the top of the La Liga table following a run of poor results shortly after entering 2016. However, Luis Suarez stepped up at crucial moments and led the Catalans to claim the title.
The Uruguayan began the show by scoring four goals each in back-to-back games against Deportivo de la Coruna and Sporting Gijon on Matchday 34 and 35, respectively. He then contributed six more goals in the next three games to ensure the Blaugrana won the title with 91 points, just one point above arch-rivals Real Madrid.
More interestingly, Suarez beat both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to emerge as the league's top scorer with 40 goals to his name in 35 games.
#2 Cristiano Ronaldo: 2014-15
Before Luis Suarez's heroics in the 2015-16 campaign, Cristiano Ronaldo took Spanish football by storm with his amazing goalscoring exploits for Real Madrid in 2014-15. Despite the fact that his club had an underwhelming outing that season, the Portuguese thrived individually.
Ronaldo ended the campaign with the highest number of goals in the Spanish top flight and across European domestic leagues. He recorded a whopping 48 goals and 17 assists to his name in 35 games, which was enough to earn him both the La Liga and European Golden Boots.
#1 Lionel Messi: 2011-12
What Lionel Messi did during the 2011-12 campaign is simply unbelievable. The Argentine took goalscoring to another level, bagging a whopping 50 goals and 19 assists for Barcelona in 37 La Liga games. With that, he set the record for the highest number of goals ever scored in a top European league in a single campaign.
Apart from winning both the Liga and European Golden Boots, Lionel Messi also reached many fantastic milestones during that year. One of his most notable feats is his record for the most goals ever scored across all competitions (73).
The forward also set the record for the highest number of goals scored by any player in a calendar year, as he finished the year with a whopping 91 goals. In the process, he broke Gerd Muller's record of 85 goals in a calendar year.
To top it off, he also won multiple trophies that season, including the Champions League, La Liga, and the Spanish Cup.
