List of all players with 150+ appearances in international football

Cristiano Ronaldo is the only player to reach 200 appearances for the national team

With 195 caps, Malaysia’s Soh Chin Ann held the mark before Bader Al-Mutawa. Even though Soh Chin Ann played his last game for Malaysia in 1984, FIFA did not ratify this until August 2021. Soh Chin Ann has represented Malaysia in 219 matches overall.

FIFA does not recognise matches that are part of the Olympic Games or that are not classified as “A” matches, which accounts for the disparity. Football statisticians RSSSF and IFFHS acknowledge all 219 of Soh Chin Ann’s appearances, and both identify Soh Chin Ann as the record bearer for the most international appearances.

As the only male football player with 200 FIFA-recognized appearances, Cristiano Ronaldo holds the record for the most men’s international appearances. He became his country’s most-capped player and the first athlete to clock in at 200 international games in March 2021.

The India national football team captain Sunil Chhetri will be the latest player to make it into this elite list. His side will play against Afghanistan in the AFC 2026 World Cup Qualifiers.

Billy Wright of England became the first men’s football player to appear in 100 official international games in 1959; however, FIFA and The Football Association disagree over which game counts as the 100th. While the Football Association recognises the encounter against Scotland in April 1959 as the 100th cap, FIFA recognises the match against Italy in May 1959 as the legitimate 100th cap.

FIFA’s failure to acknowledge the May 1953 encounter versus Argentina as a legitimate match is the cause of this. Billy Wright would end up with 105 caps for his country.

The current international break has seen many standout performances from important players from different countries, which frequently prompts club football supporters to sigh in frustration and wonder, “Why can’t he play like that for us?”

That’s just the manner in which the game works sometimes; a player feels a connection to the national team and is motivated to play well. These players took their chances at the international level and didn’t give up easily, whether it was because they were having a good run of style, were fortunate enough to be replaced due to injury to others, or were just the only players available.

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Players with 150+ appearances for their country

1. Cristiano Ronaldo 205
2. ⁠Bader Al-Mutawa 196
3. ⁠Soh Chin Ann 195
4. Ahmed Hassan 184
5. ⁠Hassan Al-Haydos 183
6. ⁠Ahmed Mubarak 183
7. ⁠Lionel Messi 180
8. ⁠Sergio Ramos 180
9. ⁠Andrés Guardado 179
10. ⁠Hossam Hassan 177
11. ⁠Claudio Suárez 177
12. ⁠Gianluigi Buffon 176
13. ⁠Meynor Figueroa 175
14. ⁠Mohamed Al-Deayea 173
15. ⁠Luka Modrić 173
16. ⁠Amer Shafi 173
17. ⁠Iván Hurtado 168
18. ⁠Iker Casillas 167
19. Vitālijs Astafjevs 166
20. ⁠Cobi Jones 164
21. ⁠Mohammed Al-Khilaiwi 163
22. ⁠Shukor Salleh 163
23. S⁠ayed Mohammed Jaffer 162
24. ⁠Diego Godin 161
25. ⁠Mohamed Husain 161
26. ⁠Gary Medel 161
27. ⁠Alexis Sánchez 161
28. ⁠Adnan Al-Talyani 161
29. ⁠Salman Isa 160
30. ⁠Celso Borges 159
31. ⁠Essam El-Hadary 159
32. Martin Reim 157
33. ⁠Sami Al-Jaber 156
34. ⁠Konstantin Vassiljev 156
35. ⁠Landon Donovan 155
36. ⁠Jan Vertonghen 153
37. ⁠Yasuhito Endō 152
38. ⁠Fawzi Bashir 151
39. ⁠Michael Bradley 150
40. ⁠Lothar Matthäus 150
41. ⁠Guillermo Ochoa 150
42. ⁠Sunil Chhetri 150

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