This article features a list of men's professional FIFA records in association football, in any football league, cup, or other competition around the world, including professionals, semi-professionals, and amateurs. Friendly club matches are generally not eligible for the records. The article includes comprehensive statistics on official football leagues worldwide in general, without taking league rankings or coefficients into account.
These records are divided based on whether they relate to players, coaches, clubs, or stadiums.
Players
- As of 10 April 2025
Goals records
Most goals
- Most official goals: 931 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2002–
- Most overall goals: 1,917 – Lajos Tichy, 1953–1971
- Most club goals: 795 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2002–
- Most international goals: 136 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2004–
- Most domestic goals: 653 – Pelé, 1956–1977
- Most domestic league goals: 643 – Josef Bican, 1931–1957
- Most domestic national league goals: 604 – Pelé, 1956–1977
- Most domestic cup goals: 97 – Eusébio, 1961–1974
- Most international club goals: 171 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2002–
- Most goals scored for one club: 672 – Lionel Messi for Barcelona, 2004–2021
- Most goals scored in one league: 474 – Lionel Messi in La Liga, 2004–2021
- Best goal ratio ever: 1.52 – Josef Bican, 1931–1957
Most goals in a year / season
- In a calendar year: 91 – Lionel Messi, 2012
- In a football season: 107 – Ernst Wilimowski, 1940–41
- In a club football season: 96 – Fred Roberts, 1930–31
- Most goals scored by a defender in a calendar year: 27 – Daniel Passarella, 1976
- Most goals scored by a goalkeeper in a calendar year: 21 – Rogério Ceni, 2005
- Most domestic league goals scored in a football season: 67 – Archie Stark, 1924–25
- Most international club goals scored in a football season: 19
- Trésor Mputu, 2007
- Rico, 2008
- Most international goals in a calendar year: 23 – Sándor Kocsis, 1954
- Most international club goals in a calendar year: 21 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2017
- Most top club competitions scored in one season with the same team: 7 – Fernando Torres, 2012–13 for Chelsea
Most goals in a match
- Official match: 21 – Yanick Manzizila, Kongo United 30–0 Balrog Botkyrka, Swedish seventh division, 11 August 2014
- Top-tier league match: 17 – Passang Tshering, RIHS 0–20 Transport United, 2007 Bhutan A-Division, 4 August 2007
- Domestic cup match: 16 – Stefan Dembicki, Lens 32–0 Auby Asturies, 1942–43 French Cup, 11 December 1942
- International match: 13 – Archie Thompson, Australia 31–0 American Samoa, 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification (OFC), 11 April 2001
- International club match: 7
- Godfrey Chitalu, Kabwe Warriors 9–0 Majantja, 1972 African Cup of Champions Clubs, 6 February 1972
- Sasho Petrovski, Wollongong Wolves 16–0 Lotohaʻapai, 2001 OFC Club Championship, 9 January 2001
- Lee Harmon, Tupapa Maraerenga 14–0 Vaiala Tonga, 2024 OFC Men's Champions League, 20 February 2024
Youngest and oldest goalscorers
- In a match: 74 years and 125 days – Ezzeldin Bahader, 6th of October v Genius, Egyptian Third Division, 9 March 2020
- In a professional match: 50 years and 14 days – Kazuyoshi Miura, Yokohama v Thespa Gunma, 2017 J2 League, 12 March 2017
- In a domestic cup match: 49 years and 208 days – Billy Meredith, Manchester City v Brighton & Hove Albion, 1923–24 FA Cup, 23 February 1924
- In a top-tier league match: 47 years and 257 days – Billy Meredith, Manchester City v Burnley, 1921–22 First Division, 15 April 1922
- In an international match: 45 years and 73 days – Billy Meredith, Wales v England, 1919–20 British Home Championship, 11 October 1919
- In an international club competition match: 45 years and 15 days – Sabri Ramadhan Mzee, Mlandege v Sfaxien, 2020–21 CAF Champions League, 5 December 2020
- Youngest goalscorer in first division: 14 years and 215 days – Armen Ghazaryan, Shirak v Lori, 2002 Armenian Premier League, 2 September 2002
- Youngest international goalscorer: 14 years and 93 days – Aung Kyaw Tun, Myanmar v Thailand, 2000 AFF Championship, 6 November 2000
By method
- Most penalty kick goals: 174 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2004–
- Most free kick goals: 77 – Juninho, 1993–2013
- Most direct corner-kick goals: 32 – Şükrü Gülesin, 1940–1955
- Most headed goals: 154 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2002–
- Most right foot goals: 596 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2002–
- Most left foot goals: 717 – Lionel Messi, 2004–
- Most bicycle kick goals: 35 – Hugo Sánchez, 1976–1997
Others
- Most hat-tricks: 141 – Erwin Helmchen, 1924–1951
- Most matches scoring: 619 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2002–
- Most top-level club games scoring: 530 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2002–
- Most international matches scoring: 89 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2004–
- Most consecutive top-level club games scoring: 21 – Josef Bican, 1939–1940
- Most consecutive international club games scoring: 12 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2017–2018
- Most consecutive international matches scoring: 11 – Abdul Ghani Minhat, 1961–1962
- Most goals scored by a goalkeeper: 129 – Rogério Ceni, 1997–2015
- Most goals scored by a defender: 253 – Ronald Koeman, 1980–1997
- Most goals scored by a midfielder: 517 – Zico, 1971–1994
- Most goals scored by a substitute in a single game: 5 – Robert Lewandowski, Bayern Munich v Wolfsburg, 2015–16 Bundesliga, 22 September 2015
- Professional footballer to score in more different years with national team: 22 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2004–2025
- Professional footballer to score in more different years: 28 – Roque Santa Cruz, 1998–2025
- Professional footballer to score in more different decades: 5 – Kazuyoshi Miura, (1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s and 2020s)
Appearances records
Most appearances
- Most official matches: 1,396 – Peter Shilton, 1966–1997
- Most club matches: 1,267 – Fábio, 1997–
- Most international caps: 219 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2003–
- Most official matches for one club: 1,197 – Rogério Ceni for São Paulo, 1992–2015
- Most domestic club competition matches: 1,098 – Fábio, 1997–
- Most international club competition matches: 226 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2002–
- Most matches contested in top-tier national league: 987 – Fábio, 1997–
- Most matches in a single league: 848 – Peter Shilton in Football League First Division, 1966–1991
Youngest and oldest
- Oldest football player: 79 years and 89 days – David Mudge, April 2022
- Oldest professional football player: 58 years – Kazuyoshi Miura, 1986–, currently playing with Atletico Suzuka Club in Japanese fourth tier
- Oldest footballer in a top-tier league match: 54 years and 12 days – Kazuyoshi Miura, Yokohama v Urawa Red Diamonds, 2021 J1 League, 10 March 2021
- Oldest player in a domestic cup match: 52 years and 169 days – Kazuyoshi Miura, Yokohama v Yokohama F. Marinos, 2019 Emperor's Cup, 14 August 2019
- Oldest footballer in an international match: 51 years and 345 days – George Weah, Liberia v Nigeria, friendly match, 11 September 2018
- Youngest footballer in an international match: 14 years and 2 days – Lucas Knecht, Northern Mariana Islands v Guam, 2008 East Asian Football Championship, 1 April 2007
- Youngest footballer in first division: 12 years and 362 days – Mauricio Baldivieso, Aurora v La Paz, 2009 Bolivian Primera División, 19 July 2009
- Youngest footballer at senior level: 10 years and 330 days – Eric Godpower Marshall, Gar'ou v Haifa, Liberia's fourth division, 7 April 2021
Others
- Most matches as captain for one club: 964 – Rogério Ceni for São Paulo, 2001–2015
- Most seasons as captain for one club: 19 – Francesco Totti for Roma, 1998–2017
- Most years at the same club: 27
- Said Altınordu with Altınordu, 1929–1956
- Lee Casciaro with Lincoln Red Imps, 1998–
- Longest career span: 39 years – Kazuyoshi Miura, 1986–
- Longest international career span: 26 years – Ildefons Lima, 1997–2023
- Professional footballer to play in five different decades: 5 – Kazuyoshi Miura, (1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s and 2020s)
Other players records
Titles
- Most decorated player: 59 – Lee Casciaro, 2000–
- Most international club titles: 17 – Luka Modrić, 2014–
- Most national team titles: 7
- Ángel Romano, 1916–1926
- Héctor Scarone, 1917–1930
- José Nasazzi, 1923–1935
Goalkeeping
- Most clean sheets: 537 – Ray Clemence, 1965–1988
- Most clean sheets in international games: 102 – Iker Casillas, 2000–2016
- Most clean sheets in international club competitions: 79 – Pepe Reina, 2000–
- Most consecutive minutes without conceding a goal: 1,816 minutes – Mazarópi, 1977–1978
- Most consecutive minutes without conceding a goal in national leagues: 1,390 minutes – Dany Verlinden, 1990
- Most consecutive minutes without conceding a goal in international games: 1,142 minutes – Dino Zoff, 1972–1974
- Most penalties saved: 150 – Lev Yashin, 1949–1971
Matches Results
- Most matches won: 840 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2002–
- Most club matches won: 707 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2002–
- Most international matches won: 133 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2003–
- Most unbeaten matches: 1,078 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2002–
Trivia
- Most sent-off: 46 – Gerardo Bedoya, 1995–2015
- Most played with different clubs: 37 – Carlos Frontini, 2001–2020
- Most played in different divisions: 7 – Nathan Pond, 2002–
- Most played in different continental associations: 6
- Lutz Pfannenstiel, 1991–2011
- André Krul, 2007–
- Fastest goal scored: 2.8 seconds – Ricardo Oliveira, 26 December 1998
- Fastest hat-trick: 89 seconds – Magnus Arvidsson, Hässleholms IF 5–3 Landskrona BoIS, Swedish fourth division, 22 October 1995
- Longest distance goal scored: 96.01 meters – Tom King, Newport County 1–1 Cheltenham Town, 2020–21 EFL League Two, 21 January 2021
- Longest distance headed goal scored: 58.13 meters – Jone Samuelsen, Odd Grenland 3–1 Tromsø, 2011 Tippeligaen, 25 September 2011
- Player to win top scorer awards in most continents: 3 – Isidro Lángara, 1930–1948
- Player to win top scorer awards in most first tier national leagues: 4 – Cristiano Ronaldo, 2002–
- Most domestic top scorer awards: 15 – Romário, 1985–2009
- Most consecutive domestic top scorer awards: 9 – Pelé in Campeonato Paulista, 1957–1965
- Player with biggest gap between spells at a club: 29 – Paulo da Silva for Atlántida, 1995–2024
Managers
- Most games coached in total: 2,155 – Alex Ferguson, 1974–2013
- Most games coached in a single club: 1,754 – Willie Maley for Celtic, 1897–1940
- Most games coached in national league: 1,478
- Alex Ferguson, 1974–2013
- Graham Turner, 1978–2014
- Most games coached in top-tier national league: 1,374 – Alex Ferguson, 1974–2013
- Most games coached in international club competitions: 279 – Alex Ferguson, 1974–2013
- Most international games in charge: 286 – Bora Milutinović, 1983–2009
- Most international games in charge for a single national team: 228 – Óscar Tabárez for Uruguay, 1988–2021
- Longest-serving manager in history in a single club: 53 years – Amadeu Teixeira for América de Manaus, 1955–2008
- Most different clubs coached: 26 – Paulo Autuori, 1987–2023
- Most different national teams coached: 12
- Otto Pfister, 1972–2018
- Tom Saintfiet, 2008–
- Most decorated manager: 49 – Alex Ferguson, 1974–2013
- Most major international titles: 9 – Guillermo Stábile, 1939–1958
- Most first division league titles: 18 – Bill Struth, 1920–1954
- Most international club titles: 15 – Carlo Ancelotti, 1997–
- Most finals won: 31 – Alex Ferguson, 1974–2013
- Coach with biggest gap between spells at a club: 34 years – Ronnie McFall for Glentoran, 1984–2018
- Coach with biggest gap between spells at a national team: 38 years – Mircea Lucescu for Romania, 1986–2024
- Longest career as national team coach with one national team: 43 years – Mircea Lucescu for Romania, 1981–2024
- Oldest manager: 93 years – Ivor Powell
- Oldest manager coaching a national team: 80 years, 35 days – Roque Máspoli, Uruguay v Ecuador, 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification, 16 November 1997
Clubs and competitions
Honours
- Most successful national team: 23 titles – Argentina, 1921–2024
- Most international major trophies won: 35 – Real Madrid, 1955–2024
- Most national major trophies won: 118 – Celtic, 1892–2024
- Most trophies won in top level competitions: 125 – Al Ahly, 1923–2024
- Most overall trophies won: 275 – Linfield, 1891–2024
- Most national championships won: 57 – Linfield, 1891–2025
- Most titles in the same competition: 57
- ABC in Campeonato Potiguar, 1920–2022
- Linfield in Northern Ireland Football League, 1891–2025
- Most national championships won in a row: 15 – Tafea in Port Vila Football League, 1994–2009
Longest streaks
- Winning streak: 61 – Arkadag, 2023–2024
- Winning streak by a national team: 15 – Spain, 2008–2009
- Unbeaten streak: 62 – Celtic, 1915–1917
- Unbeaten streak by a national team: 37 – Italy, 2018–2021
- Losing streak: 65 – Woodford United, 2012–2013
- Losing streak by a national team: 61 – San Marino, 2004–2014
- Winless streak by a national team: 140 – San Marino, 2004–2024
- Longest streak scoring at least 1 goal: 96 – River Plate, 1936–1939
Highest scores
- In a single match: – AS Adema 149–0 SO l'Emyrne, Malagasy Pro League, 31 October 2002
- In a single competitive match: – Arbroath 36–0 Bon Accord, 1885–86 Scottish Cup, 12 September 1885
- In an international match: – Australia 31–0 American Samoa, 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification (OFC), 11 April 2001
- In a youth international match: – Vanuatu 46–0 Micronesia (u-23), 2015 Pacific Games, 7 July 2015
- Highest score in a penalty shootout in history: 49 – Washington 3–3 Bedlington, (25–24 p), Ernest Armstrong Memorial Cup, 9 March 2022
- Longest penalty shootout in history: 56 – Dimona 2–2 Shimshon Tel Aviv (23–22 p), Israeli third division, 20 May 2024
Oldest
- Oldest football club that is still active: Since 1857 – Sheffield
- Oldest football match: 1860 – Hallam 0–2 Sheffield, Friendly, 26 December 1860
- Oldest football association: 1863 – The Football Association
- Oldest competition: 1867 – Youdan Cup
- Oldest competition that is still active: Since 1871 – FA Cup
- Oldest international match: 1872 – Scotland 0–0 England, International friendly, 30 November 1872
- Oldest trophy that is still active: Since 1874 – Scottish Cup
- Oldest international competition: 1884 – British Home Championship, 1884–1984
- Oldest international club competition: 1897 – Challenge Cup, 1897–1911
Others
- Competition with most clubs participated in total: 20,000 – Copa Perú
- Football League with fewest clubs: 2 – Isles of Scilly Football League
- Football League with most clubs: 100 – Cape Verdean Football Championship
- Shortest National Championship: 7 days – Greenlandic Football Championship
- Longest football match: 3 hours and 23 minutes – Stockport County 3–2 Doncaster Rovers, Football League Third Division North Cup, 30 March 1946
- Most red cards given in a match: 36 – Claypole – Victoriano Arenas, 2010–11 Primera D Metropolitana, 3 March 2011
- Most games played on the same day: 3 – Grêmio, 1994 Campeonato Gaúcho, 11 December 1994
- Most goals in football history: 13,085 – Flamengo, 1912–
- Most goals in history in top-level competitions: 9,219 – Liverpool, 1896–
- Only winless national team: – Kiribati
- Most relevant amateur football club: – Corinthian
Stadiums
- Oldest stadium: 1804 – Sandygate
- Largest stadium: 150,000 – Rungrado 1st of May Stadium
- Largest closed stadium: 250,000 – Great Strahov Stadium
- Largest attendance at a stadium: 199,854 – Maracanã Stadium, Uruguay v Brazil (FIFA World Cup), 16 July 1950
See also
- Major achievements in association football by nation
- List of most expensive association football transfers
- Progression of association football caps record
- European association football club records and statistics
- List of unbeaten football club seasons
- List of association football teams to have won four or more trophies in one season
Notes
References
