Here are the players who have combined longevity and excellence to record the most men’s FIFA World Cup appearances of all time.
The Most World Cup Appearances by a Player:
Lionel Messi: Argentina, 28
Lothar Matthäus: Germany, 25
Miroslav Klose: Germany, 24
Cristiano Ronaldo: Portugal, 24
Paolo Maldini: Italy, 23
Diego Maradona: Argentina, 21
Uwe Seeler: Germany, 21
Wladislaw Zmuda: Poland, 21
Manuel Neuer: Germany, 21
Luka Modric: Croatia, 21
Cafu: Brazil, 20
Grzegorz Lato: Poland, 20
Javier Mascherano: Argentina, 20
Philipp Lahm: Germany, 20
Bastian Schweinsteiger: Germany, 20
Hugo Lloris: France, 20
Lionel Messi, Argentina, 28 Apps
World Cups: 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, 2026
What more is there to say about Lionel Messi? The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner cemented his place in football history by breaking the all-time World Cup appearances record in the 2022 final; a tournament that, at long last, ended in glory.
In Qatar, Messi finally lifted the trophy that had eluded him for so long. His performances echoed those of the late, great Diego Maradona back in 1986, when he too hauled Argentina into the history books in Mexico.
For years, there had been the lingering question. Could Messi truly be considered the greatest of all time if he never won the greatest prize?
In 2006, Messi was controversially left on the bench as Argentina were knocked out by Germany in the quarter-finals, with manager José Pékerman heavily criticised for not turning to his 19-year-old star.
Four years later, it was Germany again who would knock them out, this time in a crushing 4-0 defeat in South Africa under Maradona’s management, marking Argentina’s heaviest World Cup loss since 1974.
Then came heartbreak in the 2014 final, where Germany once again denied Messi. In 2018, Argentina were edged out in a thrilling 4-3 defeat to eventual champions France in the round of 16.
One of the persistent criticisms of Messi’s World Cup career was his failure to score in the knockout stages. Despite playing 756 minutes and attempting 23 shots in World Cup knockout matches, he had never found the net beyond the group phase prior to 2022.
But in Qatar, Messi rewrote the script. He became the first player in World Cup history to score in the group stage, round of 16, quarter-final, semi-final and final in a single tournament as he inspired his side to win one of the greatest World Cup matches of all time, beating France in the final on penalties after a 3-3 draw.
And with his appearances at the 2026 World Cup, Messi has extended his lead at the top of the rankings, while in the process, he became the first player to feature in six different World Cup tournaments.
Lothar Matthäus, Germany, 25 Apps
World Cups: 1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998
The longevity king. Given their success in the World Cup, it is no surprise to see Germany’s most capped player of all time, Lothar Matthäus, sit high up this list. His World Cup career started with two fleeting cameos in the 1982 World Cup in Spain, and ended in 1998, when he was surprisingly called up as a replacement for the injured sweeper Matthias Sammer. But while those two tournaments would end in heartbreak, there was glory in between.
Matthäus captained West Germany to victory in the 1990 World Cup. The skipper played every minute of that successful campaign, finishing as his side’s top scorer at the tournament with four goals. After the 1-0 victory over Argentina in the final, Matthäus was the first German captain to lift the World Cup since Franz Beckenbauer in 1974. Sixteen years later and Beckenbauer was now Matthäus’s manager, looking on approvingly. The circle was neatly complete. After that World Cup victory, he was awarded the Ballon d’Or.
Together with Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Mexican trio of Andrés Guardado, Antonio Carbajal and Rafael Márquez, Matthäus is one of only six players in history to have appeared in five separate World Cup tournaments.
Miroslav Klose, Germany, 24 Apps
World Cups: 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014
Miroslav Klose, the record World Cup goalscorer, appears next on our list. No player has as many goals at World Cup finals as the German striker, who netted 16 times in 24 appearances across four separate tournaments.
Klose made his World Cup debut in the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea and got off to the perfect start, scoring a hat-trick in Germany’s emphatic 8-0 win over Saudi Arabia. He’s one of 13 players to score a hat-trick on their World Cup debut, but no player has managed to do it since Klose in June 2002.
More statistically remarkable about Klose’s debut hat-trick is that all three of them were headers. The striker is only the second player in World Cup history to score a hat-trick of headers in a single World Cup game, after Tomas Skuhravy did it for Czechoslovakia against Costa Rica in World Cup ’90. The record scorer has also scored more headed goals than any other player in World Cup history.
The World Cup in 2014 was Klose’s last, and his crowning moment. His record 16th goal was the second in Germany’s emphatic 7-1 victory against Brazil, and he was substituted for eventual winning goalscorer Mario Götze in the final. Overall, Klose’s 16 World Cup goals came from just 63 shots – a phenomenal record of converting 25.4% of his shots across the four tournaments he played in.
Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal, 24 Apps
World Cups: 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, 2026
The evergreen Cristiano Ronaldo has made 24 appearances in World Cups, the most recent of which came in Portugal’s second game at the 2026 edition.
At 41 years, 138 days old, Ronaldo is now the fourth-oldest player in World Cup history, and the second-oldest to start a game in the competition. He is also only the second player ever to feature in six different World Cups, after Lionel Messi had become the first just a day earlier than Ronaldo:
Ronaldo’s longevity on the international stage is remarkable. He is the most capped Portuguese player in World Cup history, and also holds the record for the most appearances by any player in European Championship history, with 30.
His deepest run in the competition came during his debut tournament in 2006, when Portugal reached the semi-finals before losing to France. Since then, Ronaldo’s World Cup campaigns have been less successful. Portugal were eliminated in the round of 16 in both 2010 and 2018, failed to make it out of the group stage in 2014, and suffered a shock quarter-final defeat to Morocco in 2022.
Unlike his great rival Messi, Ronaldo has yet to score a knockout-stage goal at the World Cup – a surprising gap in his otherwise extraordinary career.
Still, Ronaldo made history when he scored against Uzbekistan at the 2026 World Cup, becoming the first player to score in six different editions.
Paolo Maldini, Italy, 23 Apps
World Cups: 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002
For a player who enjoyed such a decorated club career, Paolo Maldini’s international career was a story of near misses. He did not win a World Cup or a European Championship.
The graceful defender made his tournament debut at Italia ’90, appearing in all seven of Italy’s matches, as the hosts kept clean sheets in their first five games at the tournament.
Claudio Caniggia was the first player to breach the Italian backline in that tournament, equalising for Argentina in the semi-final and ending Italy’s World Cup record run of 518 total minutes without conceding. But after a goalless extra-time period, Argentina prevailed on penalties.
Italy conceded a tournament-low two goals in their seven matches, and Maldini was rewarded for his defensive efforts with a spot in the Team of the Tournament.
Heartbreak in a penalty shootout was once again in store for Maldini at the 1994 World Cup in USA. Now vice-captain behind the legendary Franco Baresi, Maldini showcased his famous versatility, playing both as a centre-back and full-back as the Azzurri got all the way to the final. Ultimately, they finished as runners-up after Roberto Baggio’s decisive spot-kick sailed over the bar. It was the first time the World Cup was decided on penalties.
After Baresi’s international retirement in 1994, Maldini captained the side in 1998. Italy’s campaign once again ended via penalties, with them going out to the hosts and eventual champions France.
Maldini’s fourth and final World Cup came in 2002. Italy flattered to deceive in their group games, however, and went out in controversial fashion to co-hosts South Korea in the last 16. Maldini retired immediately after and bowed out having – at the time – played the most minutes (2,216) in the World Cup of any player. Messi has subsequently beaten his record.
Heartbreak followed him to the Euros as well, with Italy famously coming within moments of glory in 2000, before Sylvain Wiltord equalised in the final minute of stoppage time and David Trezeguet netted the golden goal winner for France.
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