List of FIFA World Cup records and statistics


This is a list of records of the FIFA World Cup and its qualification matches.

General statistics by tournament

YearHostChampionWinning coachTop scorerBest player award
1930URU Alberto Suppici Guillermo Stábile rowspan="11"
1934 Vittorio Pozzo Oldřich Nejedlý -
1938 Vittorio Pozzo Leônidas -
1950 Juan López Ademir -
1954SUI Sepp Herberger Sándor Kocsis -
1958SWE Vicente Feola Just Fontaine -
1962CHI Aymoré Moreira Garrincha
Vavá
Leonel Sánchez
Flórián Albert
Valentin Ivanov
Dražan Jerković 		-
1966ENG Alf Ramsey Eusébio -
1970MEX Mário Zagallo Gerd Müller -
1974FRG Helmut Schön Grzegorz Lato -
1978ARG César Luis Menotti Mario Kempes -
1982ESP Enzo Bearzot Paolo Rossi Paolo Rossi
1986MEX Carlos Bilardo Gary Lineker Diego Maradona
1990 Franz Beckenbauer Salvatore Schillaci Salvatore Schillaci
1994USA Carlos Alberto Parreira Hristo Stoichkov
Oleg Salenko 		Romário
1998FRA Aimé Jacquet Davor Šuker Ronaldo
2002
JPN		 Luiz Felipe Scolari Ronaldo Oliver Kahn
2006GER Marcello Lippi Miroslav Klose Zinedine Zidane
2010RSA Vicente del Bosque Thomas Müller
Wesley Sneijder
David Villa
Diego Forlán 		Diego Forlán
2014BRA Joachim Löw James Rodríguez Lionel Messi
2018RUS Didier Deschamps Harry Kane Luka Modrić

Teams: Tournament position

Teams having equal quantities in the tables below are ordered by the tournament the quantity was attained in. If the quantity was attained by more than one team in the same tournament, these teams are ordered alphabetically.
; Most titles won: 5, Brazil
; Most finishes in the top two: 8, Germany
; Most finishes in the top three: 12, Germany
; Most finishes in the top four: 13, Germany
; Most finishes in the top eight:18, Brazil
; Most finishes in the top 16: 21, Brazil
; Most World Cup appearances: 21, Brazil
; Most second-place finishes: 4, Germany
; Most third-place finishes: 4, Germany
; Most fourth-place finishes: 3, Uruguay
; Most 3rd-4th-place finishes: 5, Germany
; Most 5th-8th-place finishes: 8, England
; Most 9th-16th-place finishes: 14, Mexico
; Most 17th-32nd-place finishes: 7, South Korea
; Most titles won by a confederation: 12, UEFA
; Most final appearances by confederation:19, UEFA
;Confederation with most number of teams who qualified for the finals at least once
; Confederation with fewest teams who qualified for the finals at least once: 15.38%, OFC

Consecutive

; Most consecutive championships: 2, Italy and Brazil
; Most consecutive finishes in the top two: 3, Germany and Brazil
; Most consecutive finishes in the top three: 4, Germany
; Most consecutive finishes in the top four: 4, Germany
; Most consecutive finishes in the top eight: 16, Germany
; Most consecutive finishes in the top 16: 21, Brazil
; Most consecutive finals tournaments: 21, Brazil
; Most consecutive second-place finishes: 2, Netherlands and West Germany
; Most consecutive third-place finishes: 2, Germany
; Most consecutive fourth-place finishes: No country has finished 4th in two consecutive tournaments
; Most consecutive 3rd-4th-place finishes: 2, Sweden, Brazil, France, Germany
; Most consecutive 5th-8th-place finishes: 4, Switzerland
; Most consecutive 9th-16th-place finishes: 7, Mexico
; Most consecutive 17th-32nd-place finishes: 4, South Korea
; Biggest improvement in position in consecutive tournaments: Did not participate/qualify, then champion, Italy, Uruguay, West Germany, France
; Most consecutive championships by a confederation: 4, UEFA
; Most consecutive top two appearances by confederation: 17, UEFA

Gaps

; Longest gap between successive titles: 44 years, Italy
; Longest gap between successive appearances in the top two: 48 years, Argentina
; Longest gap between successive appearances in the top three: 48 years, Argentina
; Longest gap between successive appearances in the top four: 60 years, Spain
; Longest gap between successive appearances in the finals: 56 years: Egypt, Norway

Host team

; Best finish by host team: Champion: Uruguay, Italy, England, West Germany, Argentina, France
; Worst finish by host team: 17th–32nd position : South Africa

Defending champion

; Best finish by defending champion: Champion: Italy, Brazil
; Worst finish by defending champion: Did not participate: Uruguay
; Worst finish by defending champion who participates in the next tournament: Group stage: Italy, Brazil, France, Italy, Spain, Germany

Debuting teams

; Best finish by a debuting team: Champion: Uruguay, Italy
; Best finish by a debuting team after 1934: Third place: Portugal, Croatia

Other

; Most finishes in the top two without ever being champion: 3, Netherlands
; Most finishes in the top three without ever being champion: 4, Netherlands
; Most finishes in the top four without ever being champion: 5, Netherlands
; Most appearances, never progressing from the first round: 8, Scotland
; Most finals played, never lost: 2, Uruguay
; Most semi-finals played, never lost: 5, Argentina
; Most quarter-finals played, never lost: 2, Croatia and Portugal
; Most round of 16 played, never lost: 8, Germany
; Most appearances, never winning a match: 3, Bolivia, Honduras, Egypt
; Most played final: 3, Argentina vs Germany

Teams: Tournament progress

All time

; Most appearances in the first round: 21, Brazil
; Progressed from the first round the most times: 18, Brazil
; Progressed from the first round as group winners the most times: 15, Brazil
; Eliminated in the first round the most times: 8, Scotland
; Most appearances, always progressing from the first round: 3, Republic of Ireland
; Most appearances, never progressing from the first round: 8, Scotland
; Fewest appearances, reaching quarter-finals: 1, Cuba, Wales, East Germany, Ukraine
; Most appearances, never reaching quarter-finals: 8, Scotland
; Fewest appearances, reaching semi-finals: 2, Turkey
; Most appearances, never reaching semi-finals: 16, Mexico
; Fewest appearances, reaching a final: 5, Croatia
; Most appearances, never reaching a final: 16, Mexico
; Fewest appearances, winning a title: 13, Uruguay
; Most appearances, never winning a title: 16, Mexico

Consecutive

; Most consecutive appearances in the first round: 21, Brazil
; Most consecutive progressions from the first round: 16, Germany
; Most consecutive progressions from the first round as group winners: 10, Brazil
; Most consecutive eliminations from the first round: 5, Mexico, Scotland
; Most consecutive result by the same team: 7, Round of 16, Mexico

Population

; Most populated participant: China, 1.280.000.000
; Least populated participant: Iceland, 348.000
; Most populated champion: Brazil, 179.300.000
; Least populated champion: Uruguay, 1.730.000

Host team

; Host team eliminated in the first round: South Africa

Defending champion

; Defending champion eliminated in the first round: Italy, Brazil, France, Italy, Spain, Germany

All-time table

Players

; Most championships: 3, Pelé
; Most tournaments played: 5, Antonio Carbajal, Lothar Matthäus, Rafael Márquez
; Most tournaments on national team: 5, Antonio Carbajal, Lothar Matthäus, Gianluigi Buffon, Rafael Márquez
; Most finishes in the top two : 3, Nílton Santos, Pelé, Pierre Littbarski, Lothar Matthäus, Cafu, Ronaldo
; Most finishes in the top three : 4, Miroslav Klose
; Most appearances in All-Star Team: 3, Djalma Santos, Franz Beckenbauer, Philipp Lahm
; Most matches played, finals: 25, Lothar Matthäus
; Most knockout games played, finals: 14, Miroslav Klose
; Most minutes played, finals: 2,217 minutes, Paolo Maldini
; Most matches played, qualifying: 68, Iván Hurtado
; Most matches won: 17, Miroslav Klose
; Most appearances in a World Cup final: 3, Cafu
; Most finals played with different teams: 2, Luis Monti
; Most appearances as captain: 17, Rafael Márquez
; Most tournaments as captain: 5, Rafael Márquez
; Most appearances as substitute: 11, Denílson
; Youngest player:, Norman Whiteside, vs Yugoslavia, 17 June 1982
; Youngest player, final:, Pelé, vs Sweden, 29 June 1958
; Youngest player, qualifying match:, Souleymane Mamam, vs Zambia, 6 May 2001, 2002 CAF Group 1
; Youngest captain:, Tony Meola, vs Czechoslovakia, 10 June 1990
; Youngest player to ever be named to a FIFA World Cup squad:, Edu, 1966
; Oldest player:, Essam El-Hadary, vs Saudi Arabia, 25 June 2018
; Oldest player, final:, Dino Zoff, vs West Germany, 11 July 1982
; Oldest player, qualifying match:, MacDonald Taylor Sr., vs Saint Kitts and Nevis, 18 February 2004, 2006 CONCACAF First Round.
; Oldest captain:, Essam El-Hadary, vs Saudi Arabia, 25 June 2018
; Oldest player to debut in a World Cup finals tournament:, Essam El-Hadary, vs Saudi Arabia, 25 June 2018
; Oldest player to ever be named to a FIFA World Cup squad:, Essam El-Hadary, 2018
; Largest age difference on the same team: 24 years and 42 days, 1994, Cameroon
; Largest age difference on a champion team: 21 years and 297 days, 1982, Italy
; Longest period between World Cup finals appearances as a player: 15 years and 363 days, Faryd Mondragón
; Longest span of World Cup finals appearances as a player: 16 years, Antonio Carbajal ; Elías Figueroa ; Hugo Sánchez ; Giuseppe Bergomi ; Lothar Matthäus ; Rigobert Song ; Faryd Mondragón ; Samuel Eto'o ; Rafael Márquez
; Longest period between World Cup finals appearances, overall: 44 years, Tim

Goalscoring

Individual

; Most goals scored, finals: 16, Miroslav Klose
; Most goals scored, qualifying: 39, Carlos Ruiz
; Most goals scored, single tournament: 13, Just Fontaine
; Most goals scored in a match: 5, Oleg Salenko, vs Cameroon, 1994
; Most goals scored in a lost match: 4, Ernst Wilimowski, vs Brazil, 1938
; Most goals scored in a qualifying match: 13, Archie Thompson, vs American Samoa, 2002 OFC Group 1
; Most goals scored in a final match: 3, Geoff Hurst, vs West Germany, 1966
; Most goals scored in all final matches: 3, Vavá, 2 vs Sweden in 1958 & 1 vs Czechoslovakia in 1962; Pelé, 2 vs Sweden in 1958 & 1 vs Italy in 1970; Geoff Hurst, 3 vs West Germany in 1966 and Zinedine Zidane, 2 vs Brazil in 1998 & 1 vs Italy in 2006
; Scored goal in multiple final matches: Vavá, Pelé, Paul Breitner and Zinedine Zidane.
; Most matches with at least one goal: 11, Ronaldo, Miroslav Klose
; Most consecutive matches with at least one goal: 6, Just Fontaine and Jairzinho
; Most matches with at least two goals: 4, Sándor Kocsis, Just Fontaine, Ronaldo and Miroslav Klose
; Most consecutive matches with at least two goals: 4, Sándor Kocsis
; Most hat-tricks: 2, Sándor Kocsis, Just Fontaine, Gerd Müller and Gabriel Batistuta
; Most consecutive hat-tricks: 2, Sándor Kocsis and Gerd Müller
; Fastest hat-trick: 8 minutes, László Kiss, scored at 69', 72' and 76', vs El Salvador, 1982
; Most goals scored by a substitute in a match: 3, László Kiss, vs El Salvador, 1982
; Olympic goals scored in a World Cup: 1, Marcos Coll, vs Soviet Union, 1962
; Hat-tricks from the penalty spot: Never occurred in the final tournament, four times in qualification: Kubilay Türkyilmaz, vs Faroe Islands, 7 October 2000, 2002 UEFA Group 1; Henrik Larsson, vs Moldova, 6 June 2001, 2002 UEFA Group 4; Ronaldo, vs Argentina, 2 June 2004, 2006 CONMEBOL; Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, vs Niger, 15 June 2013, 2014 CAF Second Round Group E
; Scoring in every match of a team in a World Cup : György Sárosi, 5 goals in 4 matches, Arne Nyberg, 3 goals in 3 matches, Alcides Ghiggia, 4 goals in 4 matches, Just Fontaine, 13 goals in 6 matches, Omar Oreste Corbatta, 3 goals in 3 matches, Ferenc Bene, 4 goals in 4 matches, Jairzinho, 7 goals in 6 matches, Teófilo Cubillas, 5 goals in 4 matches, James Rodríguez, 6 goals in 5 matches
; Most tournaments with at least one goal: 4, Pelé, Uwe Seeler, Miroslav Klose and Cristiano Ronaldo
; Most tournaments with at least two goals: 4, Uwe Seeler and Miroslav Klose
; Most tournaments with at least three goals: 3, Jürgen Klinsmann, Ronaldo and Miroslav Klose
; Most tournaments with at least four goals: 3, Miroslav Klose
; Most tournaments with at least five goals: 2, Teófilo Cubillas, Miroslav Klose, and Thomas Müller
; Most qualification tournaments with at least one goal: 5, Rafael Márquez and Carlos Ruiz
; Longest period between a player's first and last goals overall: 12 years, Uwe Seeler, Pelé, Diego Maradona, Michael Laudrup, Henrik Larsson, Sami Al-Jaber, Cuauhtémoc Blanco, Miroslav Klose, Ivica Olić, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi
; Longest period between successive goals: 12 years, Michael Laudrup and Ivica Olić
; First goalscorer: Lucien Laurent, vs Mexico, 13 July 1930
; Youngest goalscorer:, Pelé, vs Wales, 19 June 1958
; Youngest hat-trick scorer:, Pelé, vs France, 24 June 1958
; Youngest goalscorer, final:, Pelé, vs Sweden, 29 June 1958
; Oldest goalscorer:, Roger Milla, vs Russia, 28 June 1994
; Oldest hat-trick scorer:, Cristiano Ronaldo, vs Spain, 15 June 2018
; Oldest goalscorer, final:, Nils Liedholm, vs Brazil, 29 June 1958
; Only player to score in his teens, his twenties and his thirties: Lionel Messi
; Most penalties scored : 4, Eusébio, Rob Rensenbrink – both records for one tournament – and Gabriel Batistuta
; Most penalties missed : 2, Asamoah Gyan, vs Czech Republic, 2006 and vs Uruguay, 2010
; First substitute winning goalscorer, final: Came on 86th minute, Mario Götze, vs Argentina, 2014
; Fastest goal from kick-off: 11 seconds, Hakan Şükür, vs South Korea, 2002
; Fastest goal by a substitute: 16 seconds, Ebbe Sand, vs Nigeria, 1998
; Fastest goal in a final: 90 seconds, Johan Neeskens, vs West Germany, 1974 final
; Fastest goal in a qualifying match: 8.1 seconds, Christian Benteke, vs Gibraltar, 2018 UEFA Group H
; Fastest brace scored: 69 seconds, Toni Kroos, vs Brazil, 2014
; Latest goal in regular time: 97th minute, Neymar, vs Costa Rica, 2018
; Latest goal from kick-off: 121st minute, Alessandro Del Piero, vs Germany, 2006 and Abdelmoumene Djabou, vs Germany, 2014
; Latest goal from kick-off in a final: 120th minute, Geoff Hurst, vs Germany, 1966
; Latest goal from kick-off, with no goals scored between: 119th minute, David Platt, vs Belgium, 1990 and Fabio Grosso, vs Germany, 2006
; Latest goal from kick-off in a final, with no goals scored between: 116th minute, Andrés Iniesta, vs Netherlands, 2010

Own goals

Assisting

; Most assists provided, overall finals: 10, Pelé
; Most assists provided in a tournament:9, Raymond Kopa
; Most assists provided in finals: 3, Pelé
; Most tournaments with at least one assist: 4, Lionel Messi
; Most consecutive tournaments with at least one assist: 4, Lionel Messi

Penalties

By team

;Most awarded
;Most converted
;Most missed or saved
;Most awarded
;Most converted
;Most missed or saved

By team

;Most played
;Most played in one tournament
;Most won
;Most won in one tournament
;Most lost
;Most played shoot-out
;Most played
;Fewest played

By team

;Most played
;Most tournaments playing extra time
;Most consecutive tournaments playing extra time
;Most played in one tournament
;Most consecutive played in one tournament
;Most won
;Most lost
;Most won in one tournament
;Most consecutive won in one tournament
;Most played match
;Most consecutive played match
;Most played
;Most played, not ending in replays or shoot-outs
;Most played ending in replays
;Most played ending in shoot-outs
;Most played ending in a golden goal
;Fewest played
; Cases when replays were used
; Cases when play-offs were used
; Cases when drawing of lots was used
; Cases when fair play was used
; Most clean sheets : 10, Peter Shilton and Fabien Barthez
; Most consecutive minutes without conceding a goal : 517 mins, Walter Zenga
; Most consecutive minutes without conceding a goal : 921 mins, Richard Wilson
; Most goals conceded: 25, Antonio Carbajal and Mohamed Al-Deayea
; Most goals conceded, one tournament: 16, Hong Duk-Yung, 1954
; Most goals conceded, one match: 10, Luis Guevara Mora, 1982
; Fewest goals conceded, one tournament, champions: 2, Fabien Barthez, 1998, Gianluigi Buffon and Iker Casillas
; Fewest goals conceded, one tournament: 0, Pascal Zuberbühler, 2006
; Fewest goals conceded, penalty shoot-outs, one match: 0, Oleksandr Shovkovskiy, vs Switzerland, 2006
; Most saves, one match:16, Tim Howard, vs Belgium, 2014
; Most penalties saved, one tournament : 2, Jan Tomaszewski, 1974 and Brad Friedel, 2002
; Most penalties saved overall : 2, Jan Tomaszewski, Brad Friedel, and Iker Casillas
; Most penalties saved in one penalty shoot-out: 3, Ricardo, vs England, 2006 and Danijel Subašić, vs Denmark, 2018
; Most penalties saved overall in penalty shoot-outs: 4, Harald Schumacher, Sergio Goycochea, and Danijel Subašić
; Youngest goalkeeper:, Lee Chang-myung, vs Soviet Union, 12 July 1966
; Youngest goalkeeper to save a penalty :, Iker Casillas, vs Republic of Ireland, 16 June 2002
; Youngest goalkeeper to save a penalty in a shoot-out:, Iker Casillas, vs Republic of Ireland, 16 June 2002
; Oldest goalkeeper:, Essam El-Hadary, vs Saudi Arabia, 25 June 2018
; Oldest goalkeeper to save a penalty :, Essam El-Hadary, vs Saudi Arabia, 25 June 2018
; Oldest goalkeeper to save a penalty in a shoot-out:, Jens Lehmann, vs Argentina, 30 June 2006

Coaching

; Most matches coached: 25, Helmut Schön
; Most matches won: 16, Helmut Schön
; Most tournaments won: 2, Vittorio Pozzo
; Most tournaments: 6, Carlos Alberto Parreira
; Most nations coached: 5, Bora Milutinović, and Carlos Alberto Parreira
; Most consecutive tournaments with same team: 4, Walter Winterbottom ; Helmut Schön
; Most consecutive wins: 11, Luiz Felipe Scolari
; Most consecutive matches without a loss: 12, Luiz Felipe Scolari
; Youngest coach:, Juan José Tramutola
; Youngest coach, champions:, Alberto Suppici
; Oldest coach:, Otto Rehhagel
; Oldest coach, champions:, Vicente del Bosque
; Quickest substitution made: 4th minute, Cesare Maldini, Giuseppe Bergomi for Alessandro Nesta ; Sven-Göran Eriksson, Peter Crouch for Michael Owen
; Most championship wins as player and head coach: 3, Mário Zagallo, Brazil
; Most tournament appearances as player and head coach: 5, Mário Zagallo, Brazil ; Franz Beckenbauer, West Germany ; Berti Vogts, West Germany ; Diego Maradona, Argentina
; Won tournaments as both player and head coach: Mário Zagallo, Brazil, Franz Beckenbauer, West Germany and Didier Deschamps, France
; First World Cup player to coach a team in a World Cup: Milorad Arsenijević, Serbia
; Won tournament as a foreign head coach: No foreign coach has won a tournament
; Best finish for a foreign head coach: Runners-up, George Raynor and Ernst Happel

Refereeing

; Most tournaments: 3 – John Langenus, Ivan Eklind, Benjamin Griffiths, Arthur Ellis, Juan Gardeazábal, Jamal Al Sharif, Joël Quiniou, Ali Mohamed Bujsaim, Óscar Ruiz, Carlos Eugênio Simon, Marco Rodríguez, Joel Aguilar, Ravshan Irmatov
; Most matches refereed, overall: 11 – Ravshan Irmatov
; Most matches refereed, one tournament: 5 – Benito Archundia, Horacio Elizondo, Ravshan Irmatov and Néstor Pitana
; Youngest referee: 24 years and 193 days – Juan Gardeazábal
; Oldest referee: 53 years and 236 days – George Reader

Discipline

Note: There are no official records for cautions issued in tournaments before the introduction of yellow cards in 1970.
; Fastest caution: 11 seconds, Jesús Gallardo, vs Sweden, 2018
; Fastest sending off: 56 seconds, José Batista, vs Scotland, 1986
; Fastest sending off, qualification: 37 seconds, Rashed Al Hooti, vs Iran, 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
; Latest caution: during penalty shoot-out: Edinho, vs France 1986; Carlos Roa, vs England, 1998
; Latest sending off: after penalty shoot-out: Leandro Cufré, vs Germany, 2006
; Sent off from the bench: Claudio Caniggia, vs Sweden, 2002
;Most cards : 7, Javier Mascherano
;Most cautions : 7, Javier Mascherano
;Most sendings off : 2, Rigobert Song and Zinedine Zidane
; Most sendings off : 28, 2006
; Most sendings off : 11, Brazil
; Most sendings off : 4 in Portugal vs Netherlands, 2006
; Most sendings off : 2, Pedro Monzón & Gustavo Dezotti, v West Germany, 1990
; Most cautions : 345, 2006
; Most cautions : 88, Argentina
; Most cautions : 9, Portugal, 2006, vs Netherlands & Netherlands, 2010, vs Spain
; Most cautions :16 – Portugal vs Netherlands, June 25, 2006; and Cameroon v Germany, June 11, 2002
; Most cautions : 3 Josip Šimunić, vs Australia, 2006
; Most cautions : 14, 5 and 9 2010
; Most suspensions : 2, André Kana-Biyik

Suspension

Fine

OffenceQualifyingFinal Round
DopingMany cases
Misconduct
  • CHF 30,000, Josip Šimunić for shouting fascist Ustaše salute after the game.
  • CHF 50,000, Croatia for anti-Serbia chants by fans.
  • CHF 100,000, Luis Suárez for biting Giorgio Chiellini
  • CHF 10,000, Xherdan Shaqiri and Granit Xhaka both for celebrated their goals by making double-headed eagle gesture with their hands.
    • Fair Play Violationnonenone
    Othernonenone

    Other sanction

    Teams: Matches played/goals scored

    All time

    ; Most matches played: 109, Germany, Brazil
    ; Fewest matches played: 1, Indonesia
    ; Most wins: 73, Brazil
    ; Most losses: 27, Mexico
    ; Most draws: 21, Italy, England
    ; Most points: 237, Brazil
    ; Most average points/match: 2.17, Brazil
    ; Most matches played without a point : 6, El Salvador
    ; Most matches played without a win: 9, Honduras
    ; Most matches played until first win: 17, Bulgaria
    ; Most goals scored: 229, Brazil
    ; Most goalscorers: 80, Brazil
    ; Most goals conceded: 125, Germany
    ; Fewest goals scored: 0, Canada, China, Indonesia, Trinidad and Tobago and DR Congo
    ; Fewest goals conceded: 2, Angola
    ; Best goal difference: +124, Brazil
    ; Worst goal difference: –38, Mexico
    ; Most matches played without scoring a goal: 3, Canada, China, Trinidad and Tobago and DR Congo
    ; Most matches played always conceding a goal: 6, El Salvador
    ; Highest average of goals scored per match: 2.72, Hungary
    ; Lowest average of goals conceded per match: 0.67, Angola
    ; Highest average of goals conceded per match: 6, Indonesia
    ; Lowest average of goals both scored and conceded per match: 1, Angola
    ; Highest average of goals both scored and conceded per match: 6, Indonesia
    ; Most meetings between two teams: 7 times, Brazil vs Sweden, Germany vs Yugoslavia /Serbia and Argentina vs Germany
    ; Most consecutive meetings between two teams: 5 times, Italy vs Argentina
    ; Most meetings between two teams, final match: 3 times, Argentina vs Germany
    ; Most consecutive meetings between two teams, final match: 2 times, Argentina vs Germany
    ; Most knockout wins: 35, Germany
    ; Most knockout losses: 14, Germany
    ; Most tournaments unbeaten: 7, Brazil
    ; Most tournaments eliminated without having lost a match: 3, England
    ; Most tournaments eliminated without having won a match: 6, Mexico and Bulgaria

    In one tournament

    ; Most wins: 7, Brazil, 2002
    ; Fewest wins, champions: 3, Uruguay, 1950
    ; Most matches not won, champions: 3, Italy, 1982
    ; Most wins by non-champion : 6, Netherlands, 2010
    ; Most matches not won: 5, Yugoslavia, 1974; Argentina, 1974; West Germany, 1978; Belgium, 1986; Republic of Ireland, 1990; Argentina, 1990
    ; Most matches not won in regulation time: 6, Belgium in 1986 and England in 1990
    ; Most losses: 3
    ; Most losses, champions: 1, Germany, 1954 and 1974; Argentina, 1978; Spain, 2010
    ; Most victories over former World Cup winning teams: 3, Brazil, 1970; Italy, 1982; Argentina, 1986; Germany, 2010 and 2014
    ; Most matches against former World Cup champions and staying unbeaten: 4, Argentina, 1986
    ; Most matches between former World Cup champions: 7, 1970
    ; All matches won without extra time, replays, penalty shoot-outs or playoffs: Uruguay in 1930, Brazil in 1970, and Brazil in 2002
    ; Highest finish without winning a match: Quarter-finals, Republic of Ireland
    ; Highest finish, winning at most one match: Fourth, Sweden
    ; Most goals scored: 27, Hungary, 1954
    ; Fewest goals conceded: 0, Switzerland, 2006
    ; Most goals conceded: 16, South Korea, 1954
    ; Most matches gone into extra time: 3, Belgium, 1986; England, 1990; Argentina, 2014; Croatia, 2018
    ; Most minutes without conceding a goal: 517 mins, Italy, 1990
    ; Highest goal difference: +17, Hungary, 1954
    ; Highest goal difference, champions: +14, Brazil, 2002; Germany, 2014
    ; Lowest goal difference: −16, South Korea, 1954
    ; Lowest goal difference, champions: +6, Italy, 1938 and 1982; Spain, 2010
    ; Highest average of goals scored per match: 5.40, Hungary, 1954;
    ; Highest average goal difference per match: +3.2, Hungary, 1954
    ; Highest average goal difference per match, champions: +3.0, Uruguay, 1930
    ; Most goals scored, champions: 25, West Germany, 1954
    ; Fewest goals scored, champions: 8, Spain, 2010
    ; Fewest goals scored, finalists: 5, Argentina, 1990
    ; Fewest goals conceded, champions: 2, France, 1998; Italy, 2006; Spain, 2010
    ; Most goals conceded, champions: 14, West Germany, 1954
    ; Lowest average of goals scored per match, champions: 1.14, Spain, 2010
    ; Most unbeaten teams: 5, 2006
    ; Fewest unbeaten teams: 0, 1954
    ; Most matches to qualify for World Cup finals: 22, Australia
    ; Longest distance travelled in a single qualifying campaign: 155,000 miles: Australia
    ; Most brothers in the same team in the finals: 3, Honduras

    Teams: Overall performance (winning percentage)

    In one tournament

    All time

    ;Best overall performance
    Team
    4400100153+12+3.03.8
    6600100197+12+2.03.2
    7700100184+14+2.02.6
    44*00100115+6+1.52.8

    * one of the wins was after extra time
    ; Worst overall performance: Because a large number of teams have had lost all their matches in a World Cup, only teams with a goal difference/match <= −4.0 are included.
    Team
    20020016−16−8.00.0
    1001008−8−8.00.0
    1001006−6−6.00.0
    1001017−6−6.01.0
    30030014−14−4.70.0
    30030012−12−4.00.0
    2002008−8−4.00.0
    2002008−8−4.00.0
    30030113−12−4.00.3
    30030214−12−4.00.7

    Host team

    ;Best overall performance:
    Team
    4400100153+12

    ;Worst overall performance:
    Team
    51222045−1

    Defending champion

    ;Best overall performance:
    Team
    44*00100115+6+1.52.8

    * one of the wins was after extra time
    ;Worst overall performance:
    Team
    3012003−3−1.00.0

    Champion

    ;Best overall performance: see all-time best overall performance above
    ;Worst overall performance:
    Team
    743057126+6+0.9+1.7

    * one of the wins was after extra time

    Non-champion

    ;Best overall performance:
    Team
    761086102+8+1.1+1.4

    ;Worst overall performance: see all-time worst overall performance above

    Upsets

    Teams eliminated by penalty shoot-outs are not considered as defeated.
    ;Biggest upset in the group stage, per FIFA rankings: +74 – South Africa ranked 83 – won 2–1 over France
    ;Biggest upset in the knockout stage, per FIFA rankings: +34 – South Korea ranked 40 – won 2–1 over Italy
    ;Biggest upset of a former champion, per FIFA rankings: +74 – South Africa ranked 83 – won 2–1 over France
    ;Biggest upset of a defending champion, per FIFA rankings: +56 – South Korea ranked 57 – won 2–0 over Germany
    ;Biggest upset of a top ranked team, per FIFA rankings: +56 – South Korea ranked 57 – won 2–0 over Germany
    Continental Records
    ;Biggest upset by an African team, per FIFA rankings: +74 – South Africa ranked 83 – won 2–1 over France
    ;Biggest upset by an Asian team, per FIFA rankings: +56 – South Korea ranked 57 – won 2–0 over Germany
    ;Biggest upset by a European team, per FIFA rankings: +29 – Slovakia ranked 34 – won 3–2 over Italy
    ;Biggest upset by an Oceanian team, per FIFA rankings: +24 – Australia ranked 42 – won 3–1 over Japan
    ;Biggest upset by a North American team, per FIFA rankings: +21 – Costa Rica ranked 28 – won 3–1 over Uruguay
    ;Biggest upset by a South American team, per FIFA rankings: +15 – Ecuador ranked 36 – won 1–0 over Croatia

    Hat-tricks

    ; Most hat-tricks in a single World Cup: 8, 1954
    ; Fewest hat-tricks in a single World Cup: 0, 2006

    Streaks

    ; Most consecutive successful qualification attempts: 9, Spain
    ; Most consecutive failed qualification attempts: 20, Luxembourg
    ; Most consecutive wins: 11, Brazil, from 2–1 Turkey to 3–0 Ghana
    ; Most consecutive matches without a loss: 13, Brazil, from 3–0 Austria to 2–0 Bulgaria
    ; Most consecutive losses: 9, Mexico, from 1–4 France to 0–3 Sweden
    ; Most consecutive matches without a win: 17, Bulgaria, from 0–1 Argentina to 0–3 Nigeria
    ; Most consecutive draws: 5, Belgium, from 0–0 Netherlands to 1–1 Tunisia
    ; Most consecutive matches without a draw: 16, Portugal, from 3–1 Hungary to 1–0 Netherlands
    ; Most consecutive matches scoring at least one goal: 18, Brazil and Germany
    ; Most consecutive matches scoring at least two goals: 11, Uruguay
    ; Most consecutive matches scoring at least three / four goals: 4, Uruguay and Hungary ; also Portugal, West Germany, Brazil
    ; Most consecutive matches scoring at least six / eight goals: 2, Hungary ; also Brazil
    ; Most consecutive matches without scoring a goal: 5, Bolivia, Algeria, and Honduras
    ; Most consecutive matches without conceding a goal : 5, Italy and Switzerland
    ; Most consecutive minutes without conceding a goal: 559, Switzerland
    ; Most consecutive matches conceding at least one goal: 22, Switzerland
    ; Most consecutive matches conceding at least two goals: 9, Mexico
    ; Most consecutive matches conceding at least three goals: 5, Mexico
    ; Most consecutive matches conceding at least four goals: 3, Bolivia, Mexico
    ; Most consecutive matches conceding at least five / six / seven goals: 2, South Korea ; also United States ; also Austria

    Team

    ; Biggest margin of victory: 9, Hungary 9–0 South Korea, 1954; Yugoslavia 9–0 Zaire, 1974 and Hungary 10–1 El Salvador, 1982
    ; Biggest margin of victory, qualifying match: 31, Australia 31–0 American Samoa, April 11, 2001, 2002 OFC Group 1
    ; Most goals scored in a match, one team: 10, Hungary 10–1 El Salvador, 1982
    ; Most goals scored in a match, both teams: 12, Austria 7–5 Switzerland, 1954
    ; Highest scoring draw: 4–4, England vs Belgium, 1954, and Soviet Union vs Colombia, 1962
    ; Largest deficit overcome in a win: 3 goals, Austria, 1954 and Portugal, 1966
    ; Largest deficit overcome in a draw: 3 goals, Colombia, 1962 and Uruguay, 2002
    ; Most goals scored in extra time, both teams: 5, Italy 3–2 West Germany, 1970
    ; Most goals scored in a final, one team: 5, Brazil, 1958
    ; Most goals scored in a final, both teams: 7, Brazil 5–2 Sweden, 1958
    ; Fewest goals scored in a final, both teams: 0, Brazil 0–0 Italy, 1994
    ; Biggest margin of victory in a final: 3, Brazil 5–2 Sweden, 1958, Brazil 4–1 Italy, 1970, and France 3–0 Brazil, 1998
    ; Largest deficit overcome in a win in a final: 2, West Germany, 1954
    ; Most goals in a tournament, one team: 27, Hungary, 1954
    ; Most individual goalscorers for one team, one match: 7, Yugoslavia, vs Zaire, 1974
    ; Most individual goalscorers for one team, one tournament
    ;Largest goal difference improvement in consecutive matches: +10: Turkey – lost 1–4 to West Germany, then won 7–0 over South Korea; and West Germany – lost 8–3 to Hungary, then won 7–2 over Turkey
    ;Largest goal difference worsening in consecutive matches: −12: Sweden – won 8–0 over Cuba, then lost 5–1 to Hungary; Turkey – won 7–0 over South Korea, then lost 7–2 to West Germany; Hungary – won 10–1 over El Salvador, then lost 1–4 to Argentina

    Tournament

    ; Most goals scored in a tournament: 171 goals, 1998 and 2014
    ; Fewest goals scored in a tournament: 70 goals, 1930 and 1934
    ; Most goals per match in a tournament: 5.38 goals per match, 1954
    ; Fewest goals per match in a tournament: 2.21 goals per match, 1990
    ; Most matches without a scoreless draw: 63 matches, 2018
    ; Most consecutive matches without a scoreless draw: 36 matches, 2018
    ; Most knockout matches without a scoreless draw: 16 matches, 2018
    ; Most scorers in a tournament: 122, 2018
    ; Most players scoring at least two goals in a tournament: 37, 1998
    ; Most players scoring at least three goals in a tournament: 21, 1954
    ; Most players scoring at least four goals in a tournament: 11, 1954
    ; Most players scoring at least five goals in a tournament: 6, 1994 - Hristo Stoichkov, Oleg Salenko, Romário, Jürgen Klinsmann, Roberto Baggio and Kennet Andersson
    ; Most players scoring at least six goals in a tournament: 4, 1954 - Sándor Kocsis, Erich Probst, Max Morlock and Josef Hügi
    ; Most players scoring at least seven goals in a tournament: 2, 1970 - Gerd Müller and Jairzinho
    ; Longest distance covered by a player in a tournament: 84 km, 2014 - Thomas Müller

    Top scoring teams by tournament

    Teams listed in bold won the tournament. Fewer than half of all World Cup tournaments have been won by the highest scoring team.

    Goal scoring by tournament

    ; Most times hosted: 2, Mexico, 1970 and 1986; Italy, 1934 and 1990; France, 1938 and 1998; Germany, 1974 and 2006; Brazil, 1950 and 2014
    ; Most times hosted, continent: 11, Europe
    ; Best performance by host: Winners, 6 times: Uruguay, 1930; Italy, 1934; England, 1966; West Germany, 1974; Argentina, 1978; France, 1998
    ; Worst performance by host: South Africa in 2010 became the first host to be eliminated in the first round Two other hosts: United States in 1994 and Spain in 1982 both reached the second round but finished with a worse overall W–D–L record than South Africa's, 1–1–1. However, South Africa had a worse goal difference of −2 and both United States and Spain finished the first round with a goal difference of 0.
    ; Had its best performance as hosts: Champions: Uruguay, Italy, England, West Germany, Argentina, France
    Runners-up: Sweden
    Third place: Chile
    Fourth place: South Korea
    Quarter-finals: Switzerland, Mexico, Russia
    Round of 16: Japan
    Group stage of 32: South Africa
    ; Stadium to host most World Cup matches: Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico, 19
    ; Most times a stadium hosted a World Cup final: 2, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico and Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
    ; City to host most World Cup matches: Mexico City, Mexico, 23
    ; Most times a city hosted a World Cup final: 2, Mexico City, Mexico ; Rome, Italy ; Paris, France ; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Attendance

    ; Final: 114,600, Argentina v West Germany, 29 June 1986, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico, 1986
    ; Decisive match: 199,854, Uruguay v Brazil, 16 July 1950, Maracanã Stadium, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 1950
    ; Lowest match attendance in a World Cup tournament: 300, Romania vs Peru, 14 July 1930, Estadio Pocitos, Montevideo, Uruguay, 1930
    ; Highest match attendance in a World Cup qualifying match: 162,764, Brazil vs Colombia, 9 March 1977, Maracanã Stadium, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 1978 CONMEBOL Group 1
    ; Highest average of attendance per match: 68,991, 1994
    ; Highest attendance : 3,570,000, 1994
    ; Lowest average of attendance per match: 23,235, 1934
    ; Lowest attendance : 390,000, 1934

    Others

    ; Most players provided by a club overall: 128, Juventus
    ; Most players provided by a club in one tournament: 16, Seoul Army Club, Manchester City
    ; Most players provided by a club for champions squads overall: 25, Juventus
    ; Most players provided by a football association overall: 1022, Premier League
    ; Most players provided by a football association in one tournament: 117, The Football Association
    ; Most players provided by a football association for champions squads overall: 91, Serie A

    Footnotes