Playing at the World Cup is the pinnacle of any career.
But playing multiple World Cups and racking up 20 or more appearances is another level of consistency and achievement reserved for only the best of the best. Many don’t come close and even the great Pelé didn’t manage it.
With the 2026 World Cup coming into view, these are the players across both the men’s and women’s editions who have made the most appearances on the sport’s biggest stage.
Players With the Most World Cup Appearances—Men’s
Bastian Schweinsteiger (20 appearances, Germany)
Tournaments: 2006, 2010, 2014
Bastian Schweinsteiger was a flashy young winger when he went to his first World Cup with Germany in 2006, marking it was two brilliant goals in the third-place playoff. By the time Germany lifted the trophy in 2014, he’d become one of the top central midfielders in the world.
Javier Mascherano (20 appearances, Argentina)
Tournaments: 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018
Javier Mascherano put it all on the line to help Argentina reach the 2014 final, admitting that he tore his anus stretching every last part of his body to make a goal-saving tackle in his country’s semifinal. Sadly, they lost the showpiece against Germany.
Hugo Lloris (20 appearances, France)
Tournaments: 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022
Hugo Lloris’s first World Cup in 2010 was one to quickly forget, as France self-destructed and crashed out at the group stage. By 2014, he was captain, and went on to lift the trophy in 2018 after Les Bleus hammered Croatia in the final. At his last World Cup, in 2022, they couldn’t repeat that feat.
Grzegorz Lato (20 appearances, Poland)
Tournaments: 1974, 1978, 1982
Poland’s Grzegorz Lato won the Golden Boot and helped his country finish third at the 1974 World Cup, which is primarily remembered for the explosion of Johan Cruyff and the Dutch Total Football model. He returned for two more tournaments in 1978 and 1982, including another bronze.
Philipp Lahm (20 appearances, Germany)
Tournaments: 2006, 2010, 2014
Philipp Lahm wasn’t known as a goalscorer during his illustrious career, but the Germany defender marked his first ever World Cup appearance in 2006 with a stunning strike against Costa Rica. It was a fitting way to open the scoring at a home World Cup. Eight years later, he lifted the trophy as captain.
Cafu (20 appearances, Brazil)
Tournaments: 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006
Marauding, ageless full back Cafu spanned multiple generations of Brazilian talent, getting his first opportunity on the global stage when the Selecão won in 1994. He went to the final again in 1998, losing to France, and was the captain who lifted the trophy in 2002. By 2006, he was 36.
Władysław Żmuda (21 appearances, Poland)
Tournaments: 1974, 1978, 1982, 1986
Władysław Żmuda is a lesser remembered name of Polish football’s golden generation, but has played more World Cup matches than anyone else from his country. The defender, who was only 20 in 1974, managed an extra tournament—and a single additional game—than compatriot Lato.
Uwe Seeler (21 appearances, Germany)
Tournaments: 1958, 1962, 1966, 1970
The late Uwe Seeler began playing for Germany as a teenager in 1954—when German club football was still regionalized—and remained a staple of the national team for 16 years. The closest he got to winning the World Cup was as a runner-up in 1966, but he narrowly beat Pelé to become the first player to score in four different tournaments.
Diego Maradona (21 appearances, Argentina)
Tournaments: 1982, 1986, 1990, 1994
At 17, Diego Maradona was already an Argentina international but was considered too young to be selected for the 1978 World Cup on home soil. Had manager César Luis Menotti felt differently, El Diego might have been far higher on the list and had two World Cup triumphs to his name. He was a losing finalist in 1990 but was kicked out of his Last Dance in 1994 over a failed drug test.
Cristiano Ronaldo (22 appearances, Portugal)
Tournaments: 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022
Cristiano Ronaldo was right on the cup of his explosion into superstardom when he made his World Cup debut two decades ago. Now, at the age of 40, he is is set for a record-breaking sixth World Cup tournament in 2026. Thanks to FIFA’s decision to suspend the final two games of an international ban for a red card in qualifying, he’ll be eligible for Portugal’s first match.
Paolo Maldini (23 appearances, Italy)
Tournaments: 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002
Laying claim to the label of the greatest defender of all time, Paolo Maldini first appeared in a World Cup on home soil in 1990. He reached the last four that year and played in the 1994 final, but underwhelming Italy performances in 1998 and 2002 ended in the last 16. Maldini called time on his international career after the latter but carried on for AC Milan for another seven years.
Miroslav Klose (24 appearances, Germany)
Tournaments: 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014
Pound for pound the best ever World Cup player? Miroslav Klose fell short of world class level in his club career, only breaking the 20-goal barrier three times. But the Poland-born striker was something else every time this tournament rolled around, scoring fives times each in 2002 and 2006, and another four in 2010. In 2014, he scored his 15th World Cup goal to break the men’s record.
Lothar Matthäus (25 appearances, Germany)
Tournaments: 1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998
Germany made three consecutive World Cup finals from 1982–1990, with Lothar Matthäus in the squad for all three but only featuring in the latter two. In 1990, he lifted the World Cup trophy as captain, before returning to the World Cup twice more in 1994 and 1998. He actually hadn’t played for Germany for four years in between, until being recalled at the age of 37.
Lionel Messi (26 appearances, Argentina)
Tournaments: 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022
The 2022 final, which saw Argentina prevail over France in Qatar, handed Lionel Messi his record-breaking 26th men’s World Cup appearance. The 2026 edition should see him exceed 30 as long as La Albiceleste don’t crash and burn in the group stage, which seems unlikely. But, at the age of 38, it is set to be his sixth and final World Cup tournament.
Players With the Most World Cup Appearances—Women’s
Marta (23 appearances, Brazil)
Tournaments: 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019, 2023
Marta has set the standard for women’s football for over 20 years—she is a six-time FIFA World Player of the Year and has had FIFA’s women’s annual goal award named in her honor despite still being an active player. Her 23 World Cup appearances have been spread over six tournaments and who would rule out adding to that in 2027 at the age of 41?
Julie Foudy (23 appearances, USWNT)
Tournaments: 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003
Former USWNT midfielder Julie Foudy was one of a generation of pioneering American players who dominated women’s soccer through the 1990s into the early 2000s. She was college student at Stanford University and team’s reigning player of the year when she went to her first World Cup in 1991. Foudy’s legacy was sealed as a member of the ’99ers.
Joy Fawcett (23 appearances, USWNT)
Tournaments: 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003
As a fullback, Joy Fawcett was one of the more understated members of that first legendary USWNT team. She was a consistent presence for 17 years, playing 241 times for her country—23 of those were spread across her four World Cup tournaments. She played every minute for the U.S. in 1995, 1999 and 2003, the only American to do so.
Mia Hamm (23 appearances, USWNT)
Tournaments: 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003
Namedropped in a 2002 episode of Friends as “that kind of annoying girl soccer player”, Mia Hamm was the sport’s first international female superstar. Having won two World Cups and an Olympic gold medal by the time the episode aired, it seemed like she was everywhere. Hamm appeared on numerous TV shows and even fronted her own self-titled Nintendo 64 all-female soccer game.
Christine Sinclair (24 appearances, Canada)
Tournaments: 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019, 2023
With Canada not typically a very strong contender in the history Women’s World Cup—they’ve failed to get past the group stage in five of their eight appearances to date, longevity has put national legend Christine Sinclair high on this list. Her 190 international goals is a world record.
Homare Sawa (24 appearances, Japan)
Tournaments: 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015
Homare Sawa won the Golden Ball and Golden Boot awards as best player and top scorer respectively in 2011, when Japan lifted their only title to date. But that was already the national hero’s fifth World Cup, having first played as a 16-year-old back in 1995. Two decades later, she took her appearance tally to 24 in 2015.
Birgit Prinz (24 appearances, Germany)
Tournaments: 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011
Birgit Prinz’s World Cup legacy is defined by her role in back-to-back Germany wins in 2003 and 2007, the only nation other than the United States to retain the trophy. Like Sawa in 2011, the striker was a double Golden Ball and Boot winner at her absolute peak in 2003, and had progressed to the role of captain four years later.
Carli Lloyd (25 appearances, USWNT)
Tournaments: 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019
The World Cup cemented Carli Lloyd’s clutch legacy. In 2015, the American scored every knockout round, up to and including the final as the USWNT claimed a first title since the ’99ers generation. Lloyd didn’t just score once in the final, she obliterated Japan with a hattrick in the first 16 minutes.
Abby Wambach (25 appearances, USWNT)
Tournaments: 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015
Rochester-born Abby Wambach was fractionally too young to be part of the ’99ers USWNT generation and had to wait 14 years from her senior international debut in 2001 to get her hands on a World Cup trophy, after several near and frustrating misses in between.
Formiga (27 appearances, Brazil)
Tournaments: 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019
Formiga’s record of appearing at seven different World Cup tournaments is never likely to be broken, by female or male. The former Brazil midfielder was just 17 when she was selected for the first time in 1995, and had celebrated her 41st birthday by the time she went to her last in 2019.
Kristine Lilly (30 appearances, USWNT)
Tournaments: 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007
Kristine Lilly only appeared at five World Cup tournaments to Formiga’s seven, but with the United States going deep and playing the maximum number of games each time, it was easy for the midfielder to rack them up. During Lilly’s 16-year run, the Americans never failed to make at least the semifinals, which meant always playing either a final or third-place match.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Players Who Have Made the Most World Cup Appearances.
