Here are some random records from the FIFA World Cup. These records are correct as far as we know, all are based on the results of all tournaments leading up to and including the 2026 World Cup, the first edition co-hosted by three nations — the United States, Canada and Mexico. This edition was also the first expanded to 48 teams and 104 matches.

  • The 2026 World Cup was won by Spain, who beat Argentina 1-0 after extra time in the final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on 19 July 2026. It was Spain's second World Cup title, after their first win in 2010.
  • The fastest goal in a World Cup match was scored by Turkey's Hakan Sükür after only 11 seconds, scored in the third-place play-off match against South Korea in 2002. See the list of the 10 fastest goals.
  • The fastest goal by a substitute was by Ebbe Sand of Denmark against Nigeria in the second round in 1998. Sand scored only 16 secs after coming on in Denmark's 4-1 win.
  • The biggest winning margin in a world Cup finals match was Hungary 10-1 against El Salvador in 1982. Yugoslavia also defeated Zaire 9-0 in 1974 and Hungary defeated South Korea 9-0 in 1954.
  • The biggest winning margin in a World Cup qualifyer was the 31-0 scoreline when Australia beat American Samoan in an Oceanian qualifying match for the 2002 FIFA World Cup.
  • The most World Cup appearances by a team (including 2026): 23 for Brazil (the only nation to play in every tournament), 21 for Germany, and 19 for Argentina. Four-time champions Italy missed out for the third tournament in a row.
  • The most World Cups won by a team is five by Brazil (Germany and Italy have four each)
  • The most World Cups won by a player is three by Pelé of Brazil, in 1958, 1962 and 1970.
  • The overall top goal scorer in the World Cup is now France's Kylian Mbappé, who took his career total to 22 goals at the 2026 tournament. He overtook the previous record of 16 goals held by Germany's Miroslav Klose. Argentina's Lionel Messi is second on the all-time list with 21.
  • Kylian Mbappé is also the first player to win the World Cup Golden Boot twice, finishing as the tournament's top scorer in both 2022 (8 goals) and 2026 (10 goals).
  • The most goals scored in a single tournament is 13 by Just Fontaine of France in 1958.
  • The most goals scored by a team in one tournament is 27 by Hungary in 1954. They finished runners-up to Germany that year.
  • The most World Cup matches played by a player is 34 by Lionel Messi of Argentina, who at the 2026 tournament also became the first player to start three World Cup finals (2014, 2022 and 2026).
  • The most total cards given to a player is six, to French player Zinedine Zidane (1998-2006) and Brazilian Cafu (1994-2006).
  • The oldest player to appear at the FIFA World Cup is Egyptian goalkeeper Essam El Hadary who was 45-years and 161-days-old when he took the field for his team's final group match against Saudi Arabia on 25 June 2018. See more about the oldest and youngest.
  • The youngest player to appear at the FIFA World Cup was Northern Ireland's Norman Whiteside, who was just 17 years and 41 days old when he took the field against Yugoslavia on 17 June 1982.
  • The youngest player to have scored a goal is Brazilian Pelé, who scored against Wales in 1958 when aged 17 years and 239 days old. See the list of the 10 youngest goal scorers.
  • The highest attendance at a World Cup match was 199,854 at the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janerio for the 1950 decider between Uraguay and Brazil.
  • The lowest attendance at a World Cup match was for the match between Peru and Romania in 1930, where just 300 people watched the game.
  • The largest World Cup ever was the 2026 tournament, the first with 48 teams and 104 matches. It drew a record total attendance of more than 6.8 million fans across the three host nations.
  • Qatar became the first hosts of a FIFA World Cup to lose their opening match. The team lost their first match 2-0 against Ecuador in 2022.
  • Morroco become the first African nation ever to advance to World Cup semi-finals. The team reached the World Cup semi-finals for the first time in history after beating Portugal 1-0 at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.