Liam Happe
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are, unsurprisingly, two of the most tenured World Cup players of all time.
With 2026 in the USA, Canada and Mexico likely to be the last chance for either to play any further World Cup games, it remains to be seen if Messi — who will turn 39 during the next tournament — and Ronaldo, who will be 41 when it starts, are involved.
So, who has appeared at the most World Cups so far among male players? And who has played in the most World Cup games?
Here’s where things stand, as at the end of Qatar 2022.
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Messi holds the all-time men’s FIFA World Cup games record, while Ronaldo is the closest active player who can catch him, four games behind.
*Bold denotes active player
At the 2026 tournament, there will be a maximum of eight games for any players whose country reaches the final, assuming they feature in each match.
This is one more than the usual maximum of seven per tournament, thanks to the expansion to 48 teams and addition of a Round of 32.
Ronaldo can leap to second on the list if Portugal participate, call a 41-year-old Ronaldo up, and play him in all three group games as well as in the Round of 32 should they progress.
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Messi and Ronaldo have each played in five World Cups in their careers, with each featuring in the 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018 and 2022 events.
If either plays in the North American edition in ’26, they’ll have appeared in six, which would be a new all-time high.
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Six men have played at five different World Cup tournaments: Messi, Ronaldo, Lothar Matthaus and Mexican trio Antonio Carbajal, Andres Guardado and Rafael Marquez.
Guardado, 38, could also go for a record sixth tournament alongside Ronaldo and Messi. Marquez could attend in his current role as Mexico’s assistant coach, but his playing days ended after Russia 2018.
Goalkeepers Gianluigi Buffon and Guillermo Ochoa have also featured at five different tournaments, but the Italian only played at four of them and the Mexican at just three.
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Though they’d be aged 41 and 39 respectively, their generational talent will not be turned down by their national coach if they make themselves available, even if their roles are reduced compared to previous editions.
Neither has guaranteed they will yet, but if fully fit, most expect them to head to North America.
The other major hurdle of course, is qualification.
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Argentina have only ever missed a World Cup four times and will be expected to be a part of the expanded 2026 tournament as they sit top of the CONMEBOL qualifying section after seven matches.
Portugal, meanwhile, will hope to be one of 16 nations from Europe who make the cut with qualification groups set to be drawn in December 2024.
Liam is a freelance editor for The Sporting News working across global English editions.
