Introduction
The FIFA World Cup, held every four years since 1930, is the pinnacle of international soccer and has attracted the sport’s greatest players vying for the title of world champion. Throughout the tournament’s history, many players have left their mark by setting records and achieving impressive statistics, solidifying their place in World Cup history.
This article delves into some of the most notable records, such as the highest number of goals scored in a single tournament, the most career World Cup goals by a player, and the teams with the most tournament wins.
Purpose
This blog will explore the champions and memorable moments of each tournament. From the early days of the tournament to the modern era of soccer, we will delve into the rich history of the FIFA World Cup championships. Join us as we discover the greatest soccer players in the history of the sport.
FIFA World Cup Records and Statistics
Overall Player Records
Most World Cup Appearances
| Player | Teams | Matches | Appearances | Tournaments |
| Lionel Messi | Argentina | 26 | 5 | 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022 |
| Lothar Matthaus | Germany | 25 | 5 | 1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998 |
| Miroslav Klose | Germany | 24 | 4 | 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014 |
| Paolo Maldini | Italy | 23 | 4 | 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002 |
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Portugal | 22 | 5 | 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022 |
Top 10 World Cup Winning Players
| Player | Team | # Titles Won | Tournament Year | Other Appearances |
| Pele | Brazil | 3 | 1958, 1962, 1970 | 1966 |
| Bellini | Brazil | 2 | 1958, 1962 | 1966 |
| Cafu | Brazil | 2 | 1994, 2002 | 1998, 2006 |
| Castilho | Brazil | 2 | 1958, 1962 | 1950, 1954 |
| Didi | Brazil | 2 | 1958, 1962 | 1954 |
| Djalma Santos | Brazil | 2 | 1958, 1962 | 1954, 1966 |
| Giovanni Ferrari | Italy | 2 | 1934, 1938 | |
| Garrincha | Brazil | 2 | 1958, 1962 | 1966 |
| Gilmar | Brazil | 2 | 1958, 1962 | 1966 |
| Guido Masetti | Italy | 2 | 1934, 1938 |
Youngest Players in World Cup
| Player | Team | Age | Tournament |
| Norman Whiteside | Ireland | 17 years, 40 days | 1982 (Spain) |
| Samuel Eto’o | Cameroon | 17 years, 98 days | 1998 (France) |
| Femi Opabunmi | Nigeria | 17 years, 100 days | 2002 (S.Korea -Japan) |
| Salomon Olembe | Cameroon | 17 years, 184 days | 1998 (France) |
| Pele | Brazil | 17 years, 234 days | 1958 (Sweden) |
| Bartholomew Ogbeche | Nigeria | 17 years, 244 days | 2002 (S.Korea -Japan) |
| Rigobert Song | Cameroon | 17 years, 353 days | 1994 (USA) |
| Youssoufa Moukoko | Germany | 18 years, 3 days | 2022 (Qatar) |
| Garang Kuol | Australia | 18 years, 69 days | 2022 (Qatar) |
| Gavi | Spain | 18 years, 110 days | 2022 (Qatar) |
Oldest Players in World Cup
| Player | Team | Age | Tournament |
| Essam El-Hadary | Egypt | 45 years, 161 days | 2018 (Russia) |
| Faryd Mondragon | Colombia | 43 years, 3 days | 2014 (Brazil) |
| Roger Milla | Cameroon | 42 years, 39 days | 1994 (USA) |
| Pat Jennings | Ireland | 41 years, 0 days | 1986 (Mexico) |
| Peter Shilton | England | 40 years, 292 days | 1990 (Italy) |
| Dino Zoff | Italy | 40 years, 133 days | 1992 (Spain) |
| Ali Boumnijel | Tunisia | 40 years, 71 days | 2006 (Germany) |
| Jim Leighton | Scotland | 39 years, 334 days | 1998 (France) |
| David James | England | 39 years, 330 days | 2010 (South Africa) |
| Angel Labruna | Germany | 39 years, 260 days | 1958 (Sweden) |
Players: Goal Scoring Records & Statistics
Top 10 All-time Goal Scorers
| Rank | Player | Team | Goals | Matches | Tournament |
| 1 | Miroslav Klose | Germany | 16 | 24 | 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014 |
| 2 | Ronaldo | Brazil | 15 | 19 | [1994], 1998, 2002, 2006 |
| 3 | Gerd Muller | West Germany | 14 | 13 | 1970, 1974 |
| 4 | Just Fontaine | France | 13 | 6 | 1958 |
| 4 | Lionel Messi | Argentina | 13 | 26 | 2006, (2010), 2014, 2018, 2022 |
| 6 | Pele | Brazil | 12 | 14 | 1958, 1962, 1966, 1970 |
| 6 | Kylian Mbappe | France | 12 | 14 | 2018, 2022 |
| 8 | Sandor Kocsis | Hungary | 11 | 5 | 1954 |
| 8 | Jurgen Klinsmann | Germany | 11 | 17 | 1990, 1994, 1998 |
| 10 | Helmut Rahn | Germany | 10 | 10 | 1954, 1958 |
- In 1994, Ronaldo was part of the squad but did not play in a match.
- In 2010, Messi was part of the squad, but did not scored a goal.
Most Goals Scored By A Player In Single Tournament
| Player | Team | Goals | Matches | Tournament Year |
| Just Fontaine | France | 13 | 6 | 1958 |
| Sandor Kocsis | Hungary | 11 | 5 | 1954 |
| Gred Muller | Germany | 10 | 6 | 1970 |
| Eusebio | Portugal | 9 | 6 | 1966 |
| Ademir | Brazil | 9 | 6 | 1950 |
Most Goals Scored By A Player In Single Match
Oleg Salenko, of Russia scored 5 goals in a match against Cameroon in 1994 (California). It was scored during group stage match. Russia won by 6-1.
Most Goals By A Player In Single Final Match
| Player | Team | Goals Scored | Opponent | Tournament |
| Kylian Mbappe | France | 3 | Argentina | 2022 |
| Geoff Hurst | England | 3 | Germany | 1966 |
Most Goals By A Player in Finals History
| Player | Team | Goals Scored | Finals Played | Tournament |
| Kylian Mbappe | France | 4 | 2 | 2018, 2022 |
| Geoff Hurst | England | 3 | 1 | 1966 |
| Vava | Brazil | 3 | 2 | 1958, 1962 |
| Pele | Brazil | 3 | 2 | 1958, 1970 |
| Zinedine Zidane | France | 3 | 2 | 1998, 2006 |
| Gino Colaussi | Italy | 2 | 1 | 1938 |
| Silvio Piola | Italy | 2 | 1 | 1938 |
| Helmut Rahn | Germany | 2 | 1 | 1954 |
| Mario Kempes | Argentina | 2 | 1 | 1978 |
| Paul Breitner | Germany | 2 | 2 | 1974, 1982 |
| Ronaldo | Brazil | 2 | 2 | 1998, 2002 |
| Lionel Messi | Argentina | 2 | 2 | 2014, 2022 |
Highest Goal Scoring Matches
| Tournament | Stage | Team 1 | Team 2 | Total Goals | Score | Who Won? |
| 1954 | Group Stage | Austria | Switzerland | 12 | 7-5 | Austria |
| 1938 | Round 16 | Brazil | Poland | 11 | 6-5 | Brazil |
| 1954 | Group Stage | Hungary | Germany | 11 | 8-3 | Hungary |
| 1982 | Group Stage | Hungary | El Salvador | 11 | 10-1 | Hungary |
| 1958 | Group Stage | France | Paraguay | 10 | 7-3 | France |
| 1954 | Group Stage | Hungary | South Korea | 9 | 9-0 | Hungary |
| 1974 | Group Stage | Yugoslavia | Zaire (DR Congo) | 9 | 9-0 | Yugoslavia |
Record Book of Hat-trick Goals
Here are the most interesting facts about about hat-tricks in the World Cup, that you may want to know.
| Record | Tournament | Player | Team | Goals Scored | Opponent | Stage | Result |
| First Hat-trick | 1930 | Bert Patenaude | USA | 3 | Paraguay | Group Stage | 3-0 |
| Most Hat-tricks in Single World Cup | 1954 | Sandor Kocsis | Hungary | 3 | South Korea | Group Stage | 9-0 |
| 1954 | Sandor Kocsis | Hungary | 4 | Germany | Group Stage | 8-3 | |
| Most Goals in Single Match | 1994 | Oleg Salenko | Russia | 5 | Cameroon | Group Stage | 6-1 |
| First Hat-trick on Debut Match | 1930 | Guillermo Stabile | Argentina | 3 | Mexico | Group Stage | 6-3 |
| Most Hat-trick for a Losing Side | 1938 | Ernst Wilimowski | Poland | 4 | Brazil | Round 16 | 5-6 |
| 1954 | Josef Hugi | Switzerland | 3 | Austria | Quater-finals | 5-7 | |
| 1986 | Igor Belanov | Soviet Union | 3 | Belgium | Round 16 | 3-4 | |
| 2022 | Kylian Mbappe | France | 3 | Argentina | Finals | 4-2 | |
| Hat-trick In a Match But Not Won | 2018 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Portugal | 3 | Spain | Group Stage | 3-3 |
| Hat-tricks in Same Match by Two players from the Same Team | 1938 | Gustav Wetterstrom | Sweden | 3 | Cuba | Quater Finals | 8-0 |
| Harry Andersson | Sweden | 3 | |||||
| Hat-tricks in Same Match by Two players from Both Teams | 1954 | Theodor Wagner | Austria | 3 | Switzerland | Quater Finals | 7-5 |
| Josef Hugi | Switzerland | 3 | Austria | Quater Finals | 5-7 | ||
| 1938 | Ernst Wilimowski | Poland | 4 | Brazil | Round 16 | 5-6 | |
| Leonidas | Brazil | 3 | Poland | Round 16 | 6-6 | ||
| Quickest Hat-trick in a Match (Male) | 1954 | Erich Probst | Austria | 3 | Czech | Group Stage | 5-0 |
| Quickest Hat-trick in a Match (Female) | 2015 | Carli Lloyd | USA | 3 | Japan | Group Stage | 3-0 |
| Hat-trick by Substitute | 1982 | Laszlo Kiss | Hungary | 3 | El-Salvador | Group Stage | 10-1 |
| Hat-trick from Header in Single Match | 1990 | Tomas Skuhravy | Czech | 3 | Costa Rica | Round 16 | 4-1 |
| 2002 | Miroslav Klose | Germany | 3 | Saudi Arabia | Group Stage | 8-0 | |
| Youngest Player to Score a Hat-trick | 1958 | Pele | Brazil | 3 | France | Semi-Final | 5-2 |
| Youngest Player to Score a Hat-trick | 2018 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Portugal | 3 | Spain | Group Stage | 3-3 |
FIFA World Cup: FAQs on Players
Which teams scored the most number of goals in single match?
Total 12 goals were scored in a match between Austria and Switzerland (7-5) in 1954.
Austria overcame a 3-0 deficit to win. The 1954 tournament holds the record for the most goals scored per match.
Who scored a hat-trick goals in the history of FIFA World Cup
Kylian Mbappe (France) and Geoff Hurst (England) are the only two players who have scored a hat-trick in a final match in 2022 and 1966 respectively.
Which FIFA World Cup tournament has the most numbers of goals scored?
The 2022 World Cup in Qatar set a record for the most goals scored in a World Cup with a total of 172 goals, surpassing any previous World Cup.
Which FIFA World Cup tournament has the fewest or lowest numbers of goals scored?
The 1930 and 1934 World Cups hold the record for the fewest goals scored in World Cup history with a total of 70 goals in each tournament.