Seven players in the entire history of the game have won the Champions League, Ballon d'Or, European or Copa América title, and the World Cup. Rodri is now one of them.
Spain defeated Argentina on July 19, 2026 in New York to claim a second World Cup star, and Rodrigo Hernández walked away with the Golden Ball — the first Spaniard ever to receive it. The 30-year-old from Madrid didn't just win the tournament. He anchored it, operating at the base of midfield the way only he knows how: quietly, precisely, relentlessly.
What the collection actually means
Think about what it takes to complete this set. Champions League with Manchester City in 2023, Player of the Match in the final. Euro 2024 best player with Spain. Ballon d'Or that same year. And now a World Cup winner's medal with a Golden Ball on top. Most elite players go their entire careers missing one of these. Messi waited until 2022 in Qatar to get his. Zidane needed until 2002 to complete it. Beckenbauer and Müller did it together in the Bayern-West Germany era. Rivaldo and Ronaldinho are the other two.
Rodri is the only Spaniard on that list. He's also the only defensive midfielder. Every other name is an attacking player — a forward, a playmaker, a number ten. He got there by being the best at a position that rarely gets this kind of recognition.
Where this leaves his legacy
The argument for Rodri as the greatest midfielder of his generation was already credible before New York. Now it's hard to dispute. The company he keeps — Zidane, Beckenbauer, Messi — isn't a list you find yourself on by accident.
Spain's odds to retain the World Cup in 2030 will factor in whether this midfield stays intact. If Rodri remains fit and at his peak, those odds deserve serious attention. He turns 34 by the next tournament. Tight window, but this is a player who has never wasted one.
He is the seventh member of football's most exclusive club. Nobody else is close to joining him.
