World Cup
FIFA World Cup Top Scorers of All Time
The FIFA World Cup has produced some of the most iconic moments in footballing history, and some of the most famous goals ever scored, with only the very best players of all time topping the esteemed all-time scorer’s list.
We analyse the exclusive group of legendary players who have outscored all others at the prestigious tournament.
World Cup Top Scorers
Taking a place on the list of top scorers at the FIFA World Cup cements a player as one of the greatest of all time. It highlights not only the footballing ability but mental strength to deal with the pressure of the most watched sporting event on the planet and most desired trophy in world sport.
The World Cup is the most important and prestigious football tournament in the world and is treated as such by almost every professional footballer. It is seen as the pinnacle of footballing achievement to feature for one’s nation at the World Cup, and getting on the score sheet and propelling one’s side to victory is one of the most sought-after triumphs in football.
Of all the players that have featured at the World Cup since the first edition in 1930, only a select few have managed to consistently perform sufficiently enough to make the list.
Here are the top five goal scorers at the FIFA World Cup in its 92-year history.
Miroslav Klose – 16 goals
One of Germany’s most important goal scorers since his first World Cup goal in 2002, Miroslav Klose tops the list of FIFA World Cup top scorers with a whopping 16 goals.
While it might not seem like that many goals, consider that the World Cup happens once every four years, and teams will quite often only play three or four games at each tournament. Playing at four world cups and featuring in 24 World Cup matches, Miroslav Klose’s record doesn’t look like it will be broken any time soon.
Ronaldo (Brazil) – 15 goals
Just as Miroslav Klose’s record is hailed, R9’s 16 goals in 19 World Cup matches are always mentioned in conversation with the best World Cup players of all time.
Some of his most memorable goals at the World Cup came in the 2002 final when Brazil triumphed over Germany, winning 2-0. Both goals were scored by Ronaldo, who won the Golden Boot with eight goals in seven games.
Missing out on several World Cup matches due to injury, it is sure Ronaldo would have eclipsed Klose’s record had he been given the chance. Nonetheless, his 15 goals at the FIFA World Cup were once record-breaking and deserve just as much recognition.
Gerd Müller – 14 goals
Arguably one of the best World Cup players of all time, Gerd Müller has such an impressive record that if a player held it today, they would be talked about by every football fan across the land for years to come.
Scoring 14 World Cup goals in just two tournaments, Muller was one of only three players across history to break the double-figure milestone at a single World Cup. He scored back-to-back hat-tricks in 1970 and held the all-time record for 32 years before it was broken by Ronaldo.
Just Fontaine – 13 goals
Playing in just the 1958 World Cup, Just Fontaine showed just how good he was with 13 goals across six appearances.
He scored in every single one of the games he played in at the World Cup at an alarming rate that could have crushed every other scoring record if it had materialised across more tournaments. Scoring more than double that of Pele at the tournament, who scored six, Fontaine is a legend of the sport and will always leave us wondering what could have been.
Pele – 12 goals
One of the all-time greats and legends of the beautiful game, Pele will always make it into the conversation of best-ever World Cup performers, and his 12 goals speak for themselves.
The youngest player to ever score in a World Cup final at 17 years old, Pele ripped apart the World Cup across the four tournaments he played at and, to this day, is the only player ever to win three World Cups, in 1958, 1962, 1970
Honourable mentions
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are two of the current world’s best that will be looking to increase their goal ratio and boost their rankings up the record list a little further, with the duo holding a tally of six and seven, respectively.
Considered to be the two best players in the world, the pair have struggled to ever make a significant impact in the World Cup, with their impressive goal-scoring records at club level not quite transferring over to the elite international stage. Currently Ronaldo leads his great rivals, with seven World Cup goals to Messi’s six.
