Top five nations with the most FIFA World Cup titles

These countries have a history of domination on the biggest platform in the sport of football.

The 2022 FIFA World Cup is a few months away. The prestigious tournament is set to take place in Qatar at the end of the year, for its 22nd edition. Usually, the World Cup usually takes place in the summer. But, this edition will take place in November, keeping in mind the weather conditions in the Asian nation. Without a doubt, the World Cup is the biggest tournament in football and every player dreams of winning it for their respective country. 

Over the course of its history, some nations have dominated. While many countries aim to qualify for the main draw after a gruelling qualification process, some have made it a habit of winning it. Eyes will be on these historically successful teams yet again in the World Cup, when the tournament kicks off in Qatar later this year.

Winning the World Cup once takes immense effort, but winning it multiple times takes a collective effort and years of development. A country must develop their talented youngsters, provide them with a good platform and build a strong squad to find any sort of success at the tournament. On that note, here is a look at the five nations with the most men’s FIFA World Cup titles in history:

5. France - 2

France are the defending champions of the World Cup after winning the 2018 edition in Russia. The 2018 edition saw a French side which was full of exceptional youngsters, such as Kylian Mbappe and world-class players like Paul Pogba lift the World Cup. They beat Croatia in the final to record their second tournament success.

The first-ever World Cup triumph came in 1998 for France. Back then, the country was also hosting the prestigious event. Les Bleus beat then defending champions Brazil in the final to win the final World Cup of the 20th century. 

4. Argentina - 2

Argentina also has two World Cup wins over the years. The South Americans won the tournament for the first time in 1978. They were also the host nation and managed to go all the way on the back of support from their home fans. In the final, they beat the Netherlands for a 3-1 win. 

Their second triumph came in 1986. Mexico hosted the World Cup that year, which saw Argentina lift the title by beating West Germany in the final thanks to a 3-2 scoreline. In addition to France and Argentina, Uruguay also have two World Cup titles. Uruguay won it in the years 1930 and 1950.

3. Italy - 4

Italy have won the FIFA World Cup on four different occasions. The nation won the tournament for the first time back in 1934, which was only the second edition and was hosted in Italy. Four years later, the Italians repeated the feat and defended their title as the world champions by winning the 1938 edition of the tournament. 

Then, it took Italy a gap of 44 years to win their third World Cup title. They won the 1982 edition, in which Italy beat West Germany 3-1 in the final with Paolo Rossi, Marco Tardelli and Alessandro Altobelli getting on the scoresheet. The last and most recent time Italy became world champions was in 2006. Facing France in a very eventful final that saw Zinedine Zidane get sent off for headbutting  Marco Materazzi. The Azzurri won the crown on the penalties. 

2. Germany - 4

Germany are only the second nation to win the World Cup on four separate occasions, alongside Italy. The Germans have been historically dominant in the tournament, winning it in 1954, 1974, 1990 and 2014. West Germany won three of the four World Cups and as a unified country, they won it in 2014 in Brazil.

The most recent triumph was particularly impressive, as it also saw the Germans demolish hosts Brazil by 7-1 in the run up to winning the title. The ultimate fixture saw Mario Gotze hit an iconic 113th-minute winner against Argentina. 

1. Brazil - 5

Brazil are the most successful nation when it comes to winning the FIFA World Cup. They have five wins, emerging as the most dominant team in the history of the men’s edition of the tournament. Over the years, players like Pele, who scored a brace in the final to hand the country its first-ever trophy in 1958, have featured for the Selecao. 

Brazil also won the World Cup in 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002. It has been two decades since a South American nation last won the World Cup and Brazil will be hoping to put a stop to this trend in Qatar. They head into the Qatar World Cup as one of the favourites to lift the title.

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