100 World Cup Facts and Trivia Every Fan Should Know

The biggest event in the history of North American sports will take place this summer. The 2026 FIFA World Cup will begin on June 11 with matches taking place in the United States, Mexico and Canada. To get you up to speed, FOX Sports Research has put together 100 trivia questions to expand your knowledge and remind you of the rich history of this tournament. We’ll add one question each day as we approach the opening match on June 11. Let’s take a look: 100. Who has scored the most goals in World Cup editions of all time? Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal). 99. Which South American player has the most World Cup goals of all time? Ronaldo Nazário (Brazil) with 15.98. What is the best result for the United States at a World Cup? Semi-finals (third place), in 1930. 97. What is the furthest stadium Mexico has reached in the World Cup? Quarterfinals, in 1970 and 1986. 96. Who is the United States’ all-time leading scorer in the World Cup? Landon Donovan with five. 95. How many World Cup tournaments have been held? The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the 23rd edition of the tournament. 94. Who are the two players who share Mexico’s all-time World Cup goalscoring record? Luis “El Matador” Hernández and Javier “Chicharito” Hernández with four each. 93. In what year was the first World Cup held? 1930 in Uruguay. 92. How many nations have participated in each edition of the World Cup? Only one: Brazil. 91. Which player has won the most World Cups during his career? Pelé (Brazil) with three. 90. Who is the oldest player to score a goal in a World Cup match? Roger Milla (Cameroon) in 1994 against Russia at 42 years and 39 days. 89. Who is the oldest player to score a goal in World Cup knockout matches? Pepe (Portugal) in 2022 against Switzerland at 39,283 days. 88. Who is the youngest player to score a goal in a World Cup match? Pelé (Brazil) in 1958 against Wales at 17 years and 239 days. 87. Who is the youngest player to score in a World Cup final? Pelé (Brazil) in 1958 against Sweden at 17 years and 249 days. 86. Who has played in the most World Cup matches of all time? Lionel Messi (Argentina) with 26.85. Who is the oldest player to appear in a World Cup match? Essam El-Hadary (Egypt) in 2018 against Saudi Arabia at 45 years and 161 days. 84. Who is the oldest player to ever appear in a World Cup final? Dino Zoff (Italy) in 1982 against West Germany at 40 years and 133 days. 83. Who is the youngest player to appear in a World Cup match? Norman Whiteside (Northern Ireland) against Yugoslavia at 17 years and 41 days. 82. What is the record for the most appearances in a World Cup by a single player? Five. Six players have played in five World Cups: Antonio Carbajal, Andres Guardado, Lothar Matthäus, Rafael Marquez, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. 81. Which nation has the most World Cup titles? Brazil with five. 80. Who is the all-time top scorer in the World Cup? Miroslav Klose (Germany) with 16. 79. Who are the two players to have scored a hat-trick in a World Cup final? Kylian Mbappé (France, 2022) and Geoff Hurst (England, 1966). 78. How many times has a nation won consecutive World Cup titles? Twice: Italy (1934, 1938) and Brazil (1958, 1962). 77. Which nation has won the most World Cup matches? Brazil with 76. 76. Which nation has lost the most World Cup matches? Mexico with 28.75. Which nation has played in the most World Cup finals without ever winning it? Netherlands with three finals (1974, 1978, 2010). 74. Which African player has scored the most goals in the World Cup? Asamoah Gyan (Ghana) with six. 73. Who holds the record for most goals scored in a single World Cup match? Oleg Salenko (Russia) with five against Cameroon. 72. Since the odds were first listed in 1966, which eventual champion had the greatest chance of winning the World Cup? Italy in 1982 at +1800. 71. Which goalkeepers have the most clean sheets in World Cup history? Peter Shilton (England) and Fabian Barthez (France) with 10 each. 70. Which nation has had the most penalties in the World Cup? Argentina with seven. 69. Which World Cup has scored the most goals in a single tournament? 2022 with 172 goals scored in total. 68. Who is England’s all-time top scorer at the World Cup? Gary Lineker with 12.67. Who is Spain’s all-time top scorer at the World Cup? David Villa with nine. 66. What is the record for the most goals scored by a player in a single World Cup? 13, by Just Fontaine (France) in 1958. 65. What is the record for the most saves in a single penalty shootout in a World Cup match? Three, made by three different actors: 64. Where will the 2030 World Cup take place? Morocco, Portugal and Spain. 63. Who is the only player to score in the World Cup as a teenager, between 20 and 30 years old? Lionel Messi (Argentina). 62. Among the countries that have won a World Cup, which has had the longest active drought since winning? Uruguay with a 76-year drought (last victory in 1950). 61. Which nation holds the record for most World Cup final appearances? Germany with eight (1954, 1966, 1974, 1982, 1986, 1990, 2002, 2014). 60. What is the record for the most consecutive World Cup champions by a confederation? Fourth, a UEFA team has won every World Cup from 2006 to 2018 (Italy, Spain, Germany, France). 59. What is the largest margin of victory in a World Cup match? Nine goals scored on three occasions: 58. Who are the two players who share the record for the most assists in World Cup history? (by OPTA) Lionel Messi (Argentina) and Diego Maradona (Argentina). 57. How many World Cup finals have gone to penalties? Three: 56. Which confederation has the most FIFA World Cup titles? UEFA with 12.55. Of the 48 qualified teams, how many are making their first appearance in the FIFA World Cup? Four: Curaçao, Uzbekistan, Cape Verde and Jordan. 54. Who is the only CONCACAF team to reach the semi-finals of the FIFA World Cup? The United States in 1930. 53. Which nation has finished winner, second and third in the FIFA World Cup four times? Germany. 52. How many times has a nation reached the FIFA World Cup final in three consecutive editions? Twice: Brazil in 1994, 1998 and 2002 and Germany in 1982, 1986 and 1990. 51. Of the 48 qualified teams, two also have a coach who won the FIFA World Cup as captain. Who are they? Didier Deschamps (captain of France in 1998, coach of France in 2026) and Fabio Cannavaro (captain of Italy in 2006, coach of Uzbekistan in 2026). 50. Mexico will become the first country to host the FIFA World Cup three times. In what years has he hosted before? 1970 and 1986. 49. Which nation went undefeated in a record 16 qualifiers to reach the 2026 FIFA World Cup? South Korea. 48. Alphonso Davies scored Canada’s first ever goal at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar in 2022. Against whom? Croatia. 47. Among the 48 teams, which are returning to the FIFA World Cup for the first time since 1974? Haiti and DR Congo (qualified as Zaire). 46. ​​Who scored the winning goal in the 2010 FIFA World Cup final? Andrés Iniesta (Spain). 45. Who is the only goalkeeper to win the Ballon d’Or at the FIFA World Cup? Oliver Kahn (Germany). 44. Which player played the most minutes at the FIFA World Cup? Lionel Messi (Argentina). 43. Which country was the first African nation to reach the quarter-finals of the FIFA World Cup? Cameroon in 1990. 42. Which FIFA World Cup introduced VAR (video assistant referee) technology? 2018 World Cup in Russia. 41. Which FIFA World Cup was the first to be held in Asia? 2002 in South Korea and Japan. 40. Who was the first player to score in consecutive FIFA World Cup finals? Vavá (Brazil) in 1958 and 1962. 39. Who scored the winning goal in the 2014 FIFA World Cup final? Mario Götze (Germany). 38. What was the first FIFA World Cup to use goal-line technology? 2014 World Cup in Brazil. 37. Who is Portugal’s all-time top scorer at the FIFA World Cup? Eusébio (Portugal) with nine. 36. Apart from Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and France, which European countries have reached the FIFA World Cup final twice? Hungary in 1938 and 1954, and Czechoslovakia (now Czechia) in 1934 and 1962. 35. Where will the 2034 FIFA World Cup take place? Saudi Arabia. 34. What is the largest margin of victory in a World Cup final? Three goals, scored three times: 33. What is the record for the most consecutive matches scored at the FIFA World Cup? Six, made twice (Just Fontaine in 1958 and Jairzinho in 1970). 32. What is the most attended FIFA World Cup match of all time? Uruguay v Brazil in the 1950 final, with 173,850. 31. Which FIFA World Cup had the highest average attendance of all time? The 1994 FIFA World Cup in the United States, at 68,991 per match. 30. What is the record for the fastest goal scored in a FIFA World Cup match? Thirteen seconds by Hakan Şükür (Turkey) in 2002. 29. Who is the fastest person to receive a yellow card in a FIFA World Cup match? Eleven seconds from Jesús Gallardo (Mexico) against Sweden in 2018. 28. What is the fastest time a player has been sent off in a FIFA World Cup match? Fifty-two seconds by José Batista (Uruguay) against Scotland in 1986. 27. Who scored the last goal in normal time in FIFA World Cup history? Mehdi Taremi (Iran) in the 90th (+13th minute) against England in 2022. 26. Which manager holds the record for winning the most FIFA World Cups? Vittorio Pozzo (Italy, winner in 1934 and 1938). 25. Which manager holds the record for most FIFA World Cups in which he has coached? Carlos Alberto Parreira with six (1982, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2006, 2010). 24. How many bookings are given to a team during a FIFA World Cup match? Ten by Argentina against the Netherlands in 2022. 23. What is the record for the total number of bookings by both teams in a FIFA World Cup match? Eighteen by Argentina (10) and the Netherlands (eight) in 2022. 22. What is the last round reached by Portugal in the FIFA World Cup? Semi-finals, twice (1966, 2006). 21. Which country has scored the most goals in the history of the FIFA World Cup? Brazil with 237. 20. What is the record for most career goals scored in the round of 16 of the FIFA World Cup? Eight, achieved three times (Kylian Mbappé, Leonidas, Ronaldo). 19. How many goals did Cristiano Ronaldo score in the FIFA World Cup? Eight. 18. How many goals did Lionel Messi score in the FIFA World Cup? Thirteen. 17. How many goals did Cristiano Ronaldo score in the knockout stage? Zero. 16. How many matches will be played in the 2026 FIFA World Cup? 104. 15. Which of these players won the goal of the tournament at the 2006 FIFA World Cup? Maxi Rodríguez against Mexico. 14. What Which nation holds the record for the most goals scored at a single FIFA World Cup? Hungary, 27 goals in 1954. 13. Which country has played the most opening matches in the history of the FIFA World Cup? Mexico with five (1930, 1950, 1958, 1970, 2010). 12. What is the record for goals in a single group stage at the FIFA World Cup? 136 in 2014. 11. What was the most attended FIFA World Cup final of all time? Uruguay vs Brazil in 1950 with 173,850. 10. Which American has participated in the most FIFA World Cups? DaMarcus Beasley with four. 9. How many times has a player won the Golden Ball and the Golden Shoe at the same edition of the FIFA World Cup? Twice, Paolo Rossi (Italy) in 1982 and Salvatore Schillaci (Italy) in 1990. 8. How many people have won the FIFA World Cup as a player and coach? Three: Didier Deschamps (France), Mario Zagallo (Brazil), Franz Beckenbauer (Germany). 7. How many players have won the Ballon d’Or and the FIFA World Cup in the same season? Seven—Bobby Charlton (1966, England), Paolo Rossi (1982, Italy), Lothar Matthäus (1990, Germany), Zinedine Zidane (1998, France), Ronaldo (2002, Brazil), Fabio Cannavaro (2006, Italy), Lionel Messi (2022-23). 6. What is the furthest an African nation has ever reached at the FIFA World Cup? Semi-finals – Morocco in 2022. 5. What is the furthest an Asian country has come at the FIFA World Cup? Semi-finals, South Korea in 2002. 4. When was the last time a host country won the FIFA World Cup? France in 1998. 3. Which goalkeeper holds the record for the most saves in a FIFA World Cup match? Tim Howard (USA) with 16 against Belgium. 2. Who is France’s all-time top scorer at the FIFA World Cup? Just Fontaine with 13. 1. Who has scored the most goals among all CONCACAF players in FIFA World Cup history? Landon Donovan with five.