World Cup all-time records and statistics: Most goals, most wins, most games, most titles

The 2026 FIFA World Cup took place from June 11 to July 19 in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Spain ultimately won their second title in the competition, beating Argentina 1-0 in the final, and here is a comprehensive rundown of every current World Cup record - covering team achievements, individual milestones and managerial feats.

Which country has won the most World Cups?

Brazil hold the overall record at the competition with five World Cup titles, having triumphed in 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002.

Germany and Italy are joint-second on the list with four titles, while Argentina (three), France (two), Uruguay (two), Spain (two) and England (one) have also won the trophy.

Who has scored the most goals in World Cup history?

Kylian Mbappe has scored the most goals in the history of the World Cup, having found the back of the net on 22 occasions in 22 matches.

The France international netted 10 times in eight games at the 2026 tournament, but France lost to winners Spain in the semi-finals.

Who has played in the most World Cups?

Lionel Messi (Argentina) and Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) hold the record for appearances in the most World Cups with six (2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, 2026).

Which records fell at the 2026 World Cup?

A number of records have fallen at the 2026 World Cup, including the men's World Cup top goalscorer award, with Mbappe sitting at the top of the charts (22).

Lionel Messi has the assist record at the tournament with 12 - two of which came in the semi-final against England - while the legendary forward has the most appearances with 34.

Didier Deschamps (France) has also now managed 27 World Cup matches - a record.

Meanwhile, goalkeeper Unai Simon (Spain) now holds the record for longest time without conceding at a World Cup with 650 minutes.

World Cup team records

Record for titles: Brazil hold the record with five World Cup titles, won in 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002.

Record for participations: Brazil made their 23rd appearance at the 2026 tournament, having featured in every edition of the competition.

Record for consecutive titles: Italy (1934–1938) and Brazil (1958–1962) each won two titles in succession.

Most finals played: Germany have appeared in eight World Cup finals - 1954, 1966, 1974, 1982, 1986, 1990, 2002 and 2014.

Largest victory margin: Hungary beat South Korea 9-0 in 1954, Yugoslavia beat Zaire 9-0 in 1974, and Hungary beat El Salvador 10-1 in 1982.

Most goals in a single match: Austria 7-5 Switzerland, in the quarter-final of the 1954 edition - 12 goals in total.

Most goals scored by one team in a single edition: Hungary, who scored 27 goals in 1954.

Most matches played in the World Cup: Brazil, with 119 matches played.

Most matches won in the World Cup: Brazil, with 79 victories.

Most matches lost in the World Cup: Mexico, with 29 defeats.

Unbeaten run: Brazil went 13 matches without defeat between 1958 and 1966.

Record for consecutive wins: Brazil won 11 consecutive matches between 2002 and 2006.

Record for consecutive defeats: Mexico suffered nine consecutive defeats between 1930 and 1958.

Record for consecutive matches without a win: Bulgaria, with 17 matches.

Most frequently contested fixture: Brazil vs Sweden and Argentina vs Germany, each played seven times.

Number of World Cups hosted: Mexico have now hosted the tournament three times, including their role as a co-host in 2026.

Record attendance: 173,850 spectators at the Maracana for the Uruguay vs Brazil match in 1950.

World Cup individual records

All-time top scorer: Kylian Mbappe (France), with 22 goals.

Top scorer in a single edition: Just Fontaine (France), who scored 13 goals in 1958.

Top scorer in a single match: Oleg Salenko (Russia), who scored five goals against Cameroon in 1994.

Record for World Cup titles won: Pele, three-time world champion in 1958, 1962 and 1970.

Record for World Cup appearances: Lionel Messi (Argentina) and Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), with six.

Player with the most matches played in the World Cup: Lionel Messi (Argentina), with 34 appearances.

Record for finals played: Cafu (Brazil), who appeared in three consecutive finals: 1994, 1998 and 2002.

Youngest player in World Cup history: Norman Whiteside (Northern Ireland), aged 17 years and 41 days when he played at the 1982 World Cup in Spain.

Oldest player in World Cup history: Essam El-Hadary (Egypt), aged 45 years and 161 days in 2018.

Youngest goalscorer in a World Cup match: Pele, aged 17 years and 239 days in 1958.

Oldest goalscorer in a World Cup match: Roger Milla (Cameroon), aged 42 years, one month and eight days in 1994.

Fastest goal: Hakan Sukur (Turkey), who scored after 10.8 seconds against South Korea in the third-place play-off in 2002. Turkey won 3-2.

Top scorer across all World Cup finals: Kylian Mbappe (France), with four goals across two finals - one against Croatia in 2018 and three against Argentina in 2022.

Top scorer in a single World Cup final: Geoff Hurst (England, 1966) and Kylian Mbappe (France, 2022), with three goals each.

Consecutive matches scoring: Lionel Messi (Argentina), eight successive games during the 2022 and 2026 editions of the tournament.

Fastest hat-trick in World Cup history: Laszlo Kiss (Hungary), who scored three goals in eight minutes against El Salvador in 1982.

Best assist provider in World Cup history: Lionel Messi, with 12.

Longest unbeaten run for a goalkeeper: Unai Simon (Spain), who went 650 minutes without conceding across two World Cups - 2022 and 2026.

Most clean sheets in the World Cup: Peter Shilton (England) and Fabien Barthez (France), with 10 clean sheets each.

Record for most cards received: Javier Mascherano (Argentina), with seven yellow cards across four World Cups.

Record for red cards: Rigobert Song (Cameroon) and Zinedine Zidane (France), with two red cards each.

World Cup coaching records

Crowned as both player and manager: Mario Zagallo (Brazil), Franz Beckenbauer (Germany) and Didier Deschamps (France) each won the World Cup as a player and subsequently as a head coach.

Most decorated coach: Vittorio Pozzo (Italy), the only manager to win the World Cup twice - in 1934 and 1938.

Record for appearances as a coach: Carlos Alberto Parreira, who led six different nations at the World Cup: Kuwait (1982), the United Arab Emirates (1990), Brazil (1994), Saudi Arabia (1998), Brazil again (2006) and South Africa (2010).

Record for matches managed: Didier Deschamps (France), who has managed 26 World Cup matches.

Best unbeaten run as a coach: Luiz Felipe Scolari, who went 12 matches unbeaten - with Brazil in 2002 and Portugal in 2006.

Youngest coach at the World Cup: Juan Jose Tramutola (Argentina), aged 27 in 1930.

Oldest coach in World Cup history: Dick Advocaat (Curacao), aged 78 years in 2026.

Youngest coach to win the title: Alberto Suppici (Uruguay), aged 31 in 1930.

Oldest coach to win the title: Vicente del Bosque (Spain), aged 59 in 2010.

Referee with the most World Cup matches officiated: Ravshan Irmatov (Uzbekistan), who refereed 11 matches across the 2010, 2014 and 2018 World Cups.