PeléDiego MaradonaLionel MessiCristiano RonaldoZinedine ZidaneRonaldo NazárioDavid BeckhamThierry HenryAlan ShearerSteven GerrardFrank LampardPaul ScholesRyan GiggsEric CantonaDidier DrogbaJohn TerryRio FerdinandNemanja VidićRoy KeaneDennis BergkampPatrick VieiraRobert PirèsWayne RooneyMichael OwenRobbie FowlerFernando TorresLuis SuárezSergio AgüeroMohamed SalahKevin De Bruyne
Football

Football Legends

The world's most popular sport and its greatest players.

185Athletes
110Full Biographies

Advertisement

All Football Athletes

Browse 185 of the greatest football players and personalities of all time.

P
Football

Brazilian

Pelé

Forward

Three-time World Cup winner widely considered the greatest footballer of all time. Scored 757 career…

DM
Football

Argentine

Diego Maradona

Attacking Midfielder

Argentina's World Cup winner whose 1986 tournament performance and Napoli years cemented legendary s…

LM
Football

Argentine

Lionel Messi

Forward

Eight-time Ballon d'Or winner and 2022 World Cup champion, widely regarded as one of the two greates…

CR
Football

Portuguese

Cristiano Ronaldo

Forward

Five-time Ballon d'Or winner and all-time leading scorer in the Champions League and international f…

ZZ
Football

French

Zinedine Zidane

Attacking Midfielder

France's 1998 World Cup-winning captain whose technical mastery and composure made him one of the ga…

RN
Football

Brazilian

Ronaldo Nazário

Centre Forward

The Phenomenon — two-time World Cup winner whose combination of pace and technique made him the most…

DB
Football

English

David Beckham

Right Midfielder

England captain and Premier League icon whose set-piece delivery was unmatched, becoming a global cu…

TH
Football

French

Thierry Henry

Forward

Arsenal's all-time top scorer and a key member of the legendary Invincibles, combining explosive pac…

AS
Football

English

Alan Shearer

Centre Forward

Premier League all-time top scorer with 260 goals, a Newcastle United icon and England striker of ra…

SG
Football

English

Steven Gerrard

Central Midfielder

Liverpool's greatest modern captain, whose drive, passing range and goals defined the club's most ce…

FL
Football

English

Frank Lampard

Central Midfielder

Chelsea's all-time leading scorer from midfield, three-time Premier League champion and UEFA Champio…

PS
Football

English

Paul Scholes

Central Midfielder

Manchester United midfielder regarded by Xavi and Zidane as one of the finest passers in the history…

RG
Football

Welsh

Ryan Giggs

Left Winger/Midfielder

The most decorated player in English football history with 13 Premier League titles, known for longe…

EC
Football

French

Eric Cantona

Forward

The charismatic French king of Manchester United who transformed the club at the dawn of the Premier…

DD
Football

Ivorian

Didier Drogba

Centre Forward

Chelsea's greatest striker and Ivory Coast legend, scorer of two Champions League final goals includ…

JT
Football

English

John Terry

Centre Back

Chelsea captain and one of the Premier League's most commanding centre-backs across two decades at S…

RF
Football

English

Rio Ferdinand

Centre Back

Manchester United's commanding centre-back who formed one of England's finest ever defensive partner…

NV
Football

Serbian

Nemanja Vidić

Centre Back

Manchester United's ferocious Serbian centre-back, voted Premier League Player of the Season twice a…

RK
Football

Irish

Roy Keane

Central Midfielder

Manchester United's ferocious captain who drove the club's 1990s dominance through sheer force of wi…

DB
Football

Dutch

Dennis Bergkamp

Forward / Attacking Midfielder

Arsenal's non-flying Dutchman whose first touch, vision and technique placed him among football's mo…

PV
Football

French

Patrick Vieira

Central Midfielder

Arsenal's dominant French captain who embodied the Invincibles midfield with a combination of power,…

RP
Football

French

Robert Pirès

Left Midfielder / Forward

Arsenal's elegant French winger, voted FWA Footballer of the Year in 2002 and a key member of the In…

WR
Football

English

Wayne Rooney

Forward

Manchester United's all-time leading scorer and England's record goalscorer, a player of raw power a…

MO
Football

English

Michael Owen

Forward

Golden Boot winner at the 1998 World Cup aged 18, Ballon d'Or winner in 2001 and one of England's fi…

RF
Football

English

Robbie Fowler

Centre Forward

Liverpool's beloved "God" — one of the most clinical natural finishers English football has ever pro…

FT
Football

Spanish

Fernando Torres

Centre Forward

Liverpool's devastating striker at his peak and Spain's World Cup and Euro-winning centre-forward.…

LS
Football

Uruguayan

Luis Suárez

Centre Forward

One of the Premier League's most prolific scorers, La Liga title winner and Uruguay's all-time leadi…

SA
Football

Argentine

Sergio Agüero

Centre Forward

Manchester City's all-time top scorer and scorer of the most dramatic goal in Premier League history…

MS
Football

Egyptian

Mohamed Salah

Forward

Liverpool's record-breaking Egyptian King, three-time Premier League Golden Boot winner and Egypt's …

KD
Football

Belgian

Kevin De Bruyne

Central/Attacking Midfielder

Manchester City's creative heartbeat, twice named Premier League Player of the Season and widely reg…

SM
Football

Senegalese

Sadio Mané

Forward

Liverpool forward who lit up the Premier League and won the Champions League, league title and AFCON…

VV
Football

Dutch

Virgil van Dijk

Centre Back

Liverpool's transformative Dutch centre-back who finished runner-up for the Ballon d'Or in 2019, cem…

VK
Football

Belgian

Vincent Kompany

Centre Back

Manchester City's beloved captain who led them to their first Premier League title in 44 years and w…

RS
Football

English

Raheem Sterling

Forward/Winger

One of England's most effective attackers of the modern era, Premier League champion five times with…

EH
Football

Belgian

Eden Hazard

Attacking Midfielder/Forward

Chelsea's most gifted player of the modern era and Belgium's greatest footballer — dribbler of excep…

XH
Football

Spanish

Xavi Hernández

Central Midfielder

The heartbeat of Spanish football's golden generation — World Cup and two-time Euro winner whose pas…

AI
Football

Spanish

Andrés Iniesta

Central Midfielder

The scorer of the 2010 World Cup winning goal and Barcelona's most celebrated playmaker — technicall…

SB
Football

Spanish

Sergio Busquets

Defensive Midfielder

The most underrated great of the golden generation — the defensive midfielder who made Xavi and Inie…

CP
Football

Spanish

Carles Puyol

Centre Back

Barcelona's lion-hearted captain who led the club to its greatest era with physical courage and exce…

GP
Football

Spanish

Gerard Piqué

Centre Back

Spain's World Cup winner and Barcelona defender who combined defensive excellence with a flair for t…

RG
Football

Spanish

Raúl González

Forward

Real Madrid's all-time leading scorer before Ronaldo and the most important Spanish striker of his g…

RC
Football

Brazilian

Roberto Carlos

Left Back

Real Madrid's attacking Brazilian left-back whose thunderous free-kicks and overlapping runs made hi…

C
Football

Brazilian

Cafu

Right Back

Brazil's record-capped player and two-time World Cup winner — the most accomplished right-back in fo…

R
Football

Brazilian

Ronaldinho

Attacking Midfielder/Forward

Barcelona's Brazilian magician who won the Ballon d'Or in 2004 and 2005 with a style of play that wa…

DV
Football

Spanish

David Villa

Centre Forward

Spain's all-time top scorer, World Cup winner and the finest Spanish striker of his generation.…

FT
Football

Spanish

Fernando Torres

Forward

El Niño — Liverpool's electric striker at peak, Spain's World Cup hero, and Atletico Madrid legend.…

LS
Football

Uruguayan

Luis Suárez

Forward

One of the most clinical strikers in football history — Liverpool hero, Barcelona's devastating part…

PM
Football

Italian

Paolo Maldini

Left Back/Centre Back

AC Milan's greatest ever player and arguably the finest defender in football history — elegant, inte…

FB
Football

Italian

Franco Baresi

Centre Back/Sweeper

AC Milan's imperious sweeper and Italy captain — arguably the greatest defensive organiser the game …

AP
Football

Italian

Andrea Pirlo

Deep-Lying Playmaker

Football's most elegant deep-lying playmaker — Italy's World Cup winner whose precision passing and …

FT
Football

Italian

Francesco Totti

Forward/Attacking Midfielder

Roma's one-club legend — Italy's World Cup winner and arguably Serie A's most gifted player of his g…

AD
Football

Italian

Alessandro Del Piero

Forward/Attacking Midfielder

Juventus' beloved attacking midfielder, Italy's World Cup winner and the club's all-time leading sco…

RB
Football

Italian

Roberto Baggio

Forward/Attacking Midfielder

The Divine Ponytail — Italy's 1994 World Cup Golden Boot winner whose missed penalty in the final de…

FC
Football

Italian

Fabio Cannavaro

Centre Back

Italy's 2006 World Cup-winning captain and Ballon d'Or winner — one of the finest defenders of his g…

GM
Football

German

Gerd Müller

Centre Forward

Der Bomber — Germany's World Cup winner and Bayern Munich legend whose 365 Bundesliga goals were a r…

FB
Football

German

Franz Beckenbauer

Sweeper/Defender

Der Kaiser — German footballer and manager who won the World Cup both as player (1974) and manager (…

RL
Football

Polish

Robert Lewandowski

Centre Forward

One of football's most prolific strikers of the modern era — winner of two Bundesliga top scorer rec…

MK
Football

German

Miroslav Klose

Centre Forward

The FIFA World Cup's all-time leading scorer with 16 goals — Germany's World Cup winner in 2014 and …

TM
Football

German

Thomas Müller

Forward

Bayern Munich's legendary "Raumdeuter" (space interpreter) — World Cup winner and one of football's …

FR
Football

French

Franck Ribéry

Left Winger

Bayern Munich's dazzling French winger and UEFA Best Player in Europe 2013 — direct, rapid and a cre…

AR
Football

Dutch

Arjen Robben

Right Winger

Bayern Munich's Dutch winger whose trademark left-foot cut-in became one of football's most unstoppa…

MP
Football

French

Michel Platini

Attacking Midfielder

Three-time European Footballer of the Year and France's greatest player of his generation — a playma…

JP
Football

French

Jean-Pierre Papin

Centre Forward

Marseille's prolific forward and Ballon d'Or winner in 1991 whose volleys and acrobatic strikes beca…

KM
Football

French

Kylian Mbappé

Forward

France's World Cup winner and the most expensive player in football history — a striker of extraordi…

KB
Football

French

Karim Benzema

Centre Forward

Real Madrid's Ballon d'Or winner in 2022 and the club's all-time Champions League scorer — a complet…

JC
Football

Dutch

Johan Cruyff

Forward/Attacking Midfielder

The architect of Total Football — three-time Ballon d'Or winner whose influence on the modern game i…

MV
Football

Dutch

Marco van Basten

Centre Forward

AC Milan's three-time Ballon d'Or winner whose 1988 European Championship final volley is widely con…

RG
Football

Dutch

Ruud Gullit

Forward/Attacking Midfielder

AC Milan's dreadlocked Dutch forward — Ballon d'Or winner in 1987 and part of one of the most celebr…

AD
Football

Argentine/Spanish

Alfredo di Stéfano

Centre Forward

Real Madrid's greatest ever player whose five consecutive European Cups set the standard for club do…

G
Football

Brazilian

Garrincha

Right Winger

Brazil's right winger who never lost a match in which he and Pelé played together — a dribbler of su…

FP
Football

Hungarian/Spanish

Ferenc Puskás

Forward

Real Madrid's Golden Age striker and captain of the Mighty Magyars — one of the greatest scorers in …

R
Football

Brazilian

Romário

Centre Forward

Brazil's 1994 World Cup winner and scorer of over 1,000 career goals — a natural finisher of almost …

R
Football

Brazilian

Rivaldo

Forward/Attacking Midfielder

Brazil's World Cup winner and Ballon d'Or holder whose bicycle kick goals and creative brilliance li…

K
Football

Brazilian

Kaká

Attacking Midfielder

AC Milan's Brazilian maestro — Ballon d'Or winner in 2007 and the most celebrated midfielder of the …

GH
Football

Argentine

Gonzalo Higuaín

Centre Forward

One of Serie A's most prolific strikers — holder of the single-season Serie A scoring record with 36…

SE
Football

Cameroonian

Samuel Eto'o

Forward

Africa's greatest footballer of his era — four-time African Player of the Year and Champions League …

DD
Football

Ivorian

Didier Drogba

Centre Forward

Chelsea's iconic Ivorian striker — the scorer of the 2012 Champions League final goal and one of Afr…

RM
Football

Algerian

Riyad Mahrez

Right Winger

Leicester City's PFA Player of the Year during their miraculous 5000-1 title win and Manchester City…

KD
Football

Scottish

Kenny Dalglish

Forward

One of football's greatest ever forwards and managers — King Kenny who won six league titles with Li…

DL
Football

Scottish

Denis Law

Forward

The King — Manchester United's Scottish legend and European Footballer of the Year 1964, scorer of 2…

GB
Football

Northern Irish

George Best

Forward

Manchester United's mercurial genius — European Footballer of the Year 1968 and arguably the most na…

NJ
Football

Brazilian

Neymar Jr.

Forward

Brazil's record goalscorer and one of football's most technically gifted players — La Liga, Champion…

RL
Football

Polish

Robert Lewandowski

Centre Forward

Football's most prolific striker of the modern era, record Bundesliga scorer and Poland's all-time l…

EH
Football

Norwegian

Erling Haaland

Centre Forward

Manchester City's Norwegian goal machine who broke the Premier League's single-season scoring record…

VJ
Football

Brazilian

Vinícius Jr.

Left Winger

Real Madrid's Brazilian winger — Champions League winner, Copa América winner and one of the most el…

HK
Football

English

Harry Kane

Centre Forward

England's all-time leading goalscorer and one of the Premier League's most prolific strikers — a com…

LM
Football

Croatian

Luka Modrić

Central Midfielder

Real Madrid's Croatian maestro — Ballon d'Or winner in 2018 who ended Messi and Ronaldo's decade-lon…

KB
Football

French

Karim Benzema

Centre Forward

Ballon d'Or winner 2022 and Real Madrid's all-time Champions League top scorer — one of the finest c…

LY
Football

Soviet

Lev Yashin

Goalkeeper

The Black Spider — the only goalkeeper to win the Ballon d'Or, and the greatest goalkeeper in footba…

GB
Football

Italian

Gianluigi Buffon

Goalkeeper

Italy's World Cup-winning goalkeeper and Juventus's towering presence in goal across three decades —…

IC
Football

Spanish

Iker Casillas

Goalkeeper

Spain's World Cup-winning captain and the most capped Spanish player ever — a penalty-saving colossu…

PS
Football

Danish

Peter Schmeichel

Goalkeeper

Manchester United's giant Dane — the finest goalkeeper in English football history and architect of …

MN
Football

German

Manuel Neuer

Goalkeeper

Bayern Munich's sweeper-keeper who redefined the position with his ability to play as an additional …

SA
Football

Scottish

Sir Alex Ferguson

Manager

The most successful manager in British football history — 38 trophies with Manchester United includi…

JM
Football

Portuguese

José Mourinho

Manager

The Special One — winner of league titles in four countries and two Champions Leagues, the most deco…

PG
Football

Spanish

Pep Guardiola

Manager

Widely considered the finest manager of his generation — architect of tiki-taka at Barcelona and rec…

AW
Football

French

Arsène Wenger

Manager

The Professor — revolutionary Arsenal manager who transformed English football with his approach to …

RK
Football

Irish

Robbie Keane

Forward

Republic of Ireland's all-time leading scorer and one of the most consistent strikers to have played…

SM
Football

English

Steve McManaman

Attacking Midfielder/Winger

Liverpool's flying winger who became the first British player to win the Champions League with a non…

ZZ
Football

French

Zinedine Zidane

Attacking Midfielder

France's World Cup hero in 1998 — headed two goals in the final and created a dynasty at Real Madrid…

CA
Football

Scottish

Charlie Adam

Central Midfielder

Scotland's long-range specialist whose thunderbolt goals from distance made him one of the most dist…

ML
Football

British

Matthew Le Tissier

Attacking Midfielder

Southampton's one-club legend whose goals-to-appearances ratio and technically brilliant play made h…

JF
Football

Dutch

Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink

Centre Forward

Dutch striker who terrorised Premier League defences at Chelsea and Leeds — twice Golden Boot winner…

RB
Football

British

Robbie Blake

Winger/Forward

Championship stalwart whose skilful wing play and clinical finishing made him one of the lower leagu…

DS
Football

Welsh

Dean Saunders

Centre Forward

Wales's most prolific striker of the late 1980s and 1990s — a quick, intelligent forward who scored …

TC
Football

British

Tony Cottee

Centre Forward

West Ham and Everton striker whose 213 top-flight goals across fifteen seasons made him one of the m…

JA
Football

Irish

John Aldridge

Centre Forward

Republic of Ireland legend and Liverpool striker who scored 330 professional goals — one of the most…

IR
Football

Welsh

Ian Rush

Centre Forward

Liverpool's greatest ever goalscorer — 346 goals for the club across two spells and Wales's all-time…

MH
Football

Welsh

Mark Hughes

Centre Forward

Sparky — one of the most competitive and technically accomplished centre-forwards of his era, winnin…

KK
Football

British

Kevin Keegan

Forward

Two-time European Footballer of the Year — England's most iconic player of the 1970s, a relentlessly…

CR
Football

British

Cyrille Regis

Centre Forward

West Brom and England striker who was one of the first Black players to represent England at senior …

PB
Football

British

Peter Beardsley

Attacking Midfielder/Forward

One of the most creative and underrated England players of his era — his intricate link play and dri…

CW
Football

British

Chris Waddle

Winger

England's dazzling winger who became a folk hero in Marseille — one of the most elegant dribblers En…

PG
Football

British

Paul Gascoigne

Attacking Midfielder

Gazza — the most naturally gifted English midfielder of his generation whose brilliance and personal…

TS
Football

British

Trevor Steven

Right Midfielder/Winger

Everton and England's elegant right midfielder who won two league titles with Everton and became one…

HL
Football

Swedish

Henrik Larsson

Centre Forward

Celtic's greatest modern striker — 174 goals in 221 appearances for the club and a Champions League …

AM
Football

Scottish

Ally McCoist

Centre Forward

Rangers' all-time leading scorer with 355 goals — the most prolific striker in Scottish football his…

PM
Football

Scottish

Paul McStay

Central Midfielder

Celtic's elegant one-club captain — the heartbeat of the team throughout the 1980s and 1990s and Sco…

JB
Football

Scottish

Jim Baxter

Left Midfielder

Slim Jim — Rangers' most gifted Scottish footballer of the 1960s whose performance against England a…

KM
Football

Scottish

Kenny Miller

Centre Forward

The only player to have scored for both Celtic and Rangers — a goal-poacher of remarkable consistenc…

SB
Football

Scottish

Scott Brown

Central Midfielder

Celtic's warrior captain who led the club to nine consecutive Scottish league titles — one of the mo…

PK
Football

Dutch

Patrick Kluivert

Centre Forward

Ajax and Barcelona's Dutch striker who scored the Champions League-winning goal as a teenager and we…

ED
Football

Dutch

Edgar Davids

Defensive/Central Midfielder

The Pitbull — the most ferocious and technically exceptional defensive midfielder of the 1990s, famo…

CS
Football

Dutch

Clarence Seedorf

Central Midfielder

The only player to have won the Champions League with three different clubs — Ajax, Real Madrid and …

MO
Football

Dutch

Marc Overmars

Left Winger

Ajax and Arsenal's Dutch winger — one of the fastest players of his era whose contribution to Arsena…

RV
Football

Dutch

Ruud van Nistelrooy

Centre Forward

Manchester United's deadly Dutch striker who scored 150 goals in 219 games — one of the most clinica…

WS
Football

Dutch

Wesley Sneijder

Attacking Midfielder

Netherlands' 2010 World Cup finalist and Inter Milan's Champions League winner — one of the finest a…

DK
Football

Dutch

Dirk Kuyt

Forward/Right Midfielder

Liverpool's tireless Dutch forward whose work rate, pressing and big-match goals made him one of the…

LF
Football

Portuguese

Luís Figo

Right Winger

Ballon d'Or winner in 2000 whose controversial transfer from Barcelona to Real Madrid was the most a…

RC
Football

Portuguese

Rui Costa

Attacking Midfielder

Fiorentina and AC Milan's visionary Portuguese playmaker — one of the most technically gifted attack…

NG
Football

Portuguese

Nuno Gomes

Centre Forward

Portugal's record-scoring striker at major tournaments — a powerful and technically accomplished for…

D
Football

Portuguese/Brazilian

Deco

Attacking Midfielder

Porto and Barcelona's Brazilian-born Portuguese international — a Champions League winner with two d…

E
Football

Mozambican/Portuguese

Eusébio

Centre Forward

The Black Panther — Portugal's first global football superstar, top scorer at the 1966 World Cup and…

Football

Turkish

Hakan Şükür

Centre Forward

Turkey's all-time leading scorer and owner of the fastest goal in World Cup history — 11 seconds aga…

Football

Turkish

Tuncay Şanlı

Forward

Turkey's dynamic forward who made a significant impact in the Premier League and became one of the m…

DZ
Football

Ivorian

Didier Zokora

Defensive Midfielder

Ivory Coast's midfield warrior and Tottenham's combative holding midfielder — a key figure in the re…

Z
Football

Brazilian

Zico

Attacking Midfielder

The White Pelé — one of Brazil's greatest ever players who won the Ballon d'Or and scored 52 goals f…

S
Football

Brazilian

Sócrates

Attacking Midfielder

Doctor, philosopher and footballer — Sócrates was one of football's most extraordinary intellects wh…

F
Football

Brazilian

Falcão

Defensive/Central Midfielder

The Eighth King of Rome — Brazilian midfielder who became Roma's greatest player and was considered …

B
Football

Brazilian

Bebeto

Centre Forward

Brazil's 1994 World Cup winner whose baby-rocking celebration became one of football's most iconic g…

RF
Football

Brazilian

Roberto Firmino

Centre Forward/False 9

Liverpool's brilliant Brazilian False 9 — the unsung hero of Klopp's Champions League and Premier Le…

A
Football

Brazilian

Adriano

Centre Forward

One of football's greatest what-ifs — Inter Milan's Brazilian striker whose combination of power, pa…

R
Football

Brazilian

Rivaldo

Forward/Attacking Midfielder

Ballon d'Or winner and World Cup champion — Rivaldo's bicycle kick goals and creative brilliance mad…

GB
Football

Argentine

Gabriel Batistuta

Centre Forward

Batigol — the most prolific Argentine striker of his generation and one of the most feared centre-fo…

HC
Football

Argentine

Hernán Crespo

Centre Forward

Champions League finalist and two-time Italian league winner — one of the most clinical penalty box …

JZ
Football

Argentine

Javier Zanetti

Right Back/Midfielder

Inter Milan's legendary one-club man — captain across 19 years, winner of the Treble and one of the …

JR
Football

Argentine

Juan Román Riquelme

Attacking Midfielder

One of football's last classic No.10 playmakers — a player of extraordinary technical quality who al…

CT
Football

Argentine

Carlos Tevez

Centre Forward

The warrior forward — Carlos Tevez's ferocious competitiveness and powerful running made him one of …

LD
Football

American

Landon Donovan

Forward/Attacking Midfielder

The greatest American footballer of his generation — MLS all-time top scorer and scorer of the most …

CD
Football

American

Clint Dempsey

Forward/Attacking Midfielder

The Deuce — American footballer who became the first from the USA to score 50 Premier League goals a…

CJ
Football

American

Cobi Jones

Winger/Midfielder

The most capped American footballer of his era — LA Galaxy legend and one of the pioneers of America…

TH
Football

French

Thierry Henry MLS

Forward

Arsenal's all-time top scorer who revived his career at the New York Red Bulls and became one of MLS…

GW
Football

Liberian

George Weah

Centre Forward

The only African player to win the Ballon d'Or — later became President of Liberia in one of sport's…

AP
Football

Ghanaian

Abedi Pelé

Attacking Midfielder/Winger

Ghana's greatest ever footballer and African Player of the Year three times — a key figure in Marsei…

NK
Football

Nigerian

Nwankwo Kanu

Forward

Arsenal's Nigerian magician who underwent open-heart surgery at 17 and went on to win the Champions …

JO
Football

Nigerian

Jay-Jay Okocha

Attacking Midfielder

So good they named him twice — PSG's Nigerian wizard whose skill and flair made him one of football'…

YT
Football

Ivorian

Yaya Touré

Central Midfielder

Manchester City's midfield engine — four-time African Player of the Year and a key figure in City's …

ME
Football

Ghanaian

Michael Essien

Central Midfielder

Chelsea's Ghanaian powerhouse — African Player of the Year and one of the most complete midfielders …

WB
Football

Ivorian

Wilfried Bony

Centre Forward

Swansea City's powerful Ivorian striker who set a Premier League goals record for the club before be…

HN
Football

Japanese

Hidetoshi Nakata

Attacking Midfielder

Japan's most celebrated footballer and the player who first brought Asian talent to European attenti…

PJ
Football

South Korean

Park Ji-sung

Midfielder

Manchester United's South Korean dynamo — the first Asian player to win the Champions League and one…

AD
Football

Iranian

Ali Daei

Centre Forward

The first player in history to score 100 international goals — Iran's greatest footballer and a pion…

SN
Football

Japanese

Shunsuke Nakamura

Attacking Midfielder

Celtic's brilliant Japanese playmaker whose free-kick against Manchester United in the Champions Lea…

ZI
Football

Swedish

Zlatan Ibrahimović

Centre Forward

Football's most colourful self-publicist and one of the sport's most complete strikers — winner of 1…

PS
Football

Danish

Peter Schmeichel

Goalkeeper

Manchester United's giant Dane — the finest goalkeeper in English football history and the architect…

FL
Football

Swedish

Freddie Ljungberg

Midfielder

Arsenal's red-haired Swedish marauder — an iconic figure in the Invincibles season whose goals from …

ML
Football

Danish

Michael Laudrup

Attacking Midfielder/Forward

Denmark's greatest ever player — Johan Cruyff's successor at Barcelona and later Real Madrid, combin…

DD
Football

Yugoslav/Serbian

Dragan Džajić

Left Winger

The Magic Dragan — Yugoslavia's greatest ever player and Red Star Belgrade legend voted the best Eur…

Football

Croatian

Davor Šuker

Centre Forward

Croatia's World Cup Golden Boot winner in 1998 — one of the finest finishers of his era whose goals …

RP
Football

Yugoslav/Croatian

Robert Prosinečki

Attacking Midfielder

One of football's most technically gifted midfielders — the only player to score World Cup goals for…

GP
Football

North Macedonian

Goran Pandev

Forward/Attacking Midfielder

The greatest player in North Macedonian history — the man who scored the goal that sent tiny North M…

DD
Football

Polish

Dariusz Dziekanowski

Centre Forward

Poland and Celtic's goal-scoring forward whose hat-trick for Celtic against Partizan Belgrade in 198…

AS
Football

Ukrainian

Andriy Shevchenko

Centre Forward

Ukraine's greatest footballer — Ballon d'Or winner and Champions League winner with AC Milan, and 48…

OB
Football

Soviet/Ukrainian

Oleg Blokhin

Forward/Winger

Ballon d'Or winner in 1975 and the Soviet Union's greatest footballer — 112 international goals is a…

RM
Football

Cameroonian

Roger Milla

Centre Forward

The dancing goalscorer who captivated the 1990 World Cup — the first African to truly capture global…

HS
Football

Bulgarian

Hristo Stoichkov

Forward

Bulgaria's greatest footballer — Ballon d'Or winner and Golden Boot at the 1994 World Cup who guided…

JF
Football

French

Just Fontaine

Centre Forward

Owner of the most extraordinary single-tournament record in football history — 13 goals in 6 games a…

TC
Football

Peruvian

Teófilo Cubillas

Attacking Midfielder

Peru's greatest footballer and one of the finest players of the 1970s — scored 10 World Cup goals ac…

SS
Football

Italian

Salvatore Schillaci

Centre Forward

Toto Schillaci — the most celebrated one-tournament wonder in football history who came from nowhere…

GZ
Football

Italian

Gianfranco Zola

Forward/Attacking Midfielder

Chelsea's beloved Italian maestro — voted by fans as the greatest Chelsea player ever and a forward …

EC
Football

British

Eric Cantona Era - Les Ferdinand

Centre Forward

Sir Les — Newcastle's beloved centre-forward whose combination of power and technique made him one o…

DG
Football

French

David Ginola

Left Winger

Tottenham's French flying winger — FWA and PFA Player of the Year in the same season, widely conside…

IW
Football

British

Ian Wright

Centre Forward

Arsenal's most beloved striker — club record goal-scorer until Thierry Henry, Ian Wright's explosive…

JB
Football

British

Jimmy Bullard

Central Midfielder

Championship and Premier League cult hero — one of the most entertaining and likeable players of his…

RL
Football

British

Rickie Lambert

Centre Forward

The ultimate football fairytale — a former Morrisons delivery worker who became England's starting c…