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🏆 World Cup appearances by country

76 countries ranked · Wikipedia · all-time

Which country has played in the most World Cups?

The most World Cups played: 1. Brazil (23), 2. Germany (21), 3. Argentina (19).

The middle of the table sits at 6 (Nigeria, no. 38 of 76), which is the figure to measure the top against.

The top 10

  1. 🇧🇷Brazil 23
  2. 🇩🇪Germany 21
  3. 🇦🇷Argentina 19
  4. 🇮🇹Italy 18
  5. 🇲🇽Mexico 18
  6. 🇫🇷France 17
  7. 🇪🇸Spain 17
  8. 🇧🇪Belgium 15
  9. 🇺🇾Uruguay 15
  10. 🇷🇸Serbia 13

Which nations have played in the fewest World Cups?

The fewest World Cups played in this table, tied: United Arab Emirates, Ukraine and Togo, all at 1.

The bottom 10

  1. 76th 🇦🇪United Arab Emirates 1
  2. 75th 🇺🇦Ukraine 1
  3. 74th 🇹🇬Togo 1
  4. 73rd 🇰🇼Kuwait 1
  5. 72nd 🇯🇴Jordan 1
  6. 71st 🇯🇲Jamaica 1
  7. 70th 🇮🇱Israel 1
  8. 69th 🇮🇩Indonesia 1
  9. 68th 🇮🇸Iceland 1
  10. 67th 🇨🇺Cuba 1

The same ranking, as a map

Which country has played in the most World Cups? World Cup appearances · 76 countries ranked · shaded by rank, five equal groups 1. Brazil 23 · 2. Germany 21 · 3. Argentina 19 Afghanistan: no dataAlbania: no dataAlgeria: 5 (39th of 76)Angola: 1 (64th of 76)Argentina: 19 (3rd of 76)Armenia: no dataAustralia: 7 (27th of 76)Austria: 8 (24th of 76)Azerbaijan: no dataBahamas: no dataBangladesh: no dataBelarus: no dataBelgium: 15 (8th of 76)Belize: no dataBenin: no dataBhutan: no dataBolivia: 3 (48th of 76)Bosnia and Herzegovina: 2 (55th of 76)Botswana: no dataBrazil: 23 (1st of 76)Brunei: no dataBulgaria: 7 (28th of 76)Burkina Faso: no dataBurundi: no dataCambodia: no dataCameroon: 8 (25th of 76)Canada: 3 (49th of 76)Central African Republic: no dataChad: no dataChile: 9 (18th of 76)China: 1 (66th of 76)Colombia: 7 (29th of 76)Congo: no dataCosta Rica: 6 (36th of 76)Croatia: 7 (30th of 76)Cuba: 1 (67th of 76)Cyprus: no dataCzechia: 10 (17th of 76)DR Congo: 2 (56th of 76)Denmark: 6 (37th of 76)Djibouti: no dataDominican Republic: no dataEcuador: 5 (40th of 76)Egypt: 4 (43rd of 76)El Salvador: 2 (57th of 76)Equatorial Guinea: no dataEritrea: no dataEstonia: no dataEthiopia: no dataFiji: no dataFinland: no dataFrance: 17 (6th of 76)Gabon: no dataGambia: no dataGeorgia: no dataGermany: 21 (2nd of 76)Ghana: 5 (41st of 76)Greece: 3 (50th of 76)Guatemala: no dataGuinea: no dataGuinea-Bissau: no dataGuyana: no dataHaiti: 2 (58th of 76)Honduras: 3 (51st of 76)Hungary: 9 (19th of 76)Iceland: 1 (68th of 76)India: no dataIndonesia: 1 (69th of 76)Iran: 7 (31st of 76)Iraq: 2 (59th of 76)Ireland: 3 (52nd of 76)Israel: 1 (70th of 76)Italy: 18 (4th of 76)Ivory Coast: 4 (44th of 76)Jamaica: 1 (71st of 76)Japan: 8 (26th of 76)Jordan: 1 (72nd of 76)Kazakhstan: no dataKenya: no dataKuwait: 1 (73rd of 76)Kyrgyzstan: no dataLaos: no dataLatvia: no dataLebanon: no dataLesotho: no dataLiberia: no dataLibya: no dataLithuania: no dataLuxembourg: no dataMadagascar: no dataMalawi: no dataMalaysia: no dataMali: no dataMauritania: no dataMexico: 18 (5th of 76)Moldova: no dataMongolia: no dataMontenegro: no dataMorocco: 7 (32nd of 76)Mozambique: no dataMyanmar: no dataNamibia: no dataNepal: no dataNetherlands: 12 (13th of 76)New Zealand: 3 (53rd of 76)Nicaragua: no dataNiger: no dataNigeria: 6 (38th of 76)North Korea: 2 (60th of 76)North Macedonia: no dataNorway: 4 (45th of 76)Oman: no dataPakistan: no dataPanama: 2 (61st of 76)Papua New Guinea: no dataParaguay: 9 (20th of 76)Peru: 5 (42nd of 76)Philippines: no dataPoland: 9 (21st of 76)Portugal: 9 (22nd of 76)Qatar: 2 (62nd of 76)Romania: 7 (33rd of 76)Russia: 11 (16th of 76)Rwanda: no dataSaudi Arabia: 7 (34th of 76)Senegal: 4 (46th of 76)Serbia: 13 (10th of 76)Sierra Leone: no dataSlovakia: 9 (23rd of 76)Slovenia: 2 (63rd of 76)Somalia: no dataSouth Africa: 4 (47th of 76)South Korea: 12 (14th of 76)South Sudan: no dataSpain: 17 (7th of 76)Sri Lanka: no dataSudan: no dataSuriname: no dataSweden: 13 (11th of 76)Switzerland: 13 (12th of 76)Syria: no dataTaiwan: no dataTajikistan: no dataTanzania: no dataThailand: no dataTogo: 1 (74th of 76)Tunisia: 7 (35th of 76)Turkey: 3 (54th of 76)Turkmenistan: no dataUganda: no dataUkraine: 1 (75th of 76)United Arab Emirates: 1 (76th of 76)United Kingdom: no dataUnited States: 12 (15th of 76)Uruguay: 15 (9th of 76)Uzbekistan: no dataVanuatu: no dataVenezuela: no dataVietnam: no dataYemen: no dataZambia: no dataZimbabwe: no data Cape Verde: 1 (65th of 76) 3 Argentina · 19 2 Germany · 21 1 Brazil · 23 Rank 1–15 16–30 31–45 46–60 61–76 no data GEOPOLITIX geopolitix.live · the daily country-ranking game Source: Wikipedia · all-time
Hover or tap any country for its value. Tap a legend colour to isolate a band.
World Cup appearances, 76 countries, shaded by rank. Source: Wikipedia · data all-time. Projection: Equal Earth, so every country's area is honestly proportioned.

Highest and lowest by region

The same table split by continent. Each row gives how many countries on that continent are ranked, and the extremes at both ends of it, which is the comparison a world table ordered by rank hides: a continent's floor is often above another's ceiling. Continents with fewer than three ranked countries are left out, so the counts need not add up to the whole table.

RegionRankedHighestLowest
Europe27🇩🇪Germany 21🇺🇦Ukraine 1
Asia14🇰🇷South Korea 12🇦🇪United Arab Emirates 1
Africa14🇨🇲Cameroon 8🇹🇬Togo 1
North America10🇲🇽Mexico 18🇯🇲Jamaica 1
South America9🇧🇷Brazil 23🇧🇴Bolivia 3

The full ranking of all 76 countries

World Cup appearances · all-time
#CountryWorld Cup appearances
1🇧🇷Brazil23
2🇩🇪Germany21
3🇦🇷Argentina19
4🇮🇹Italy18
5🇲🇽Mexico18
6🇫🇷France17
7🇪🇸Spain17
8🇧🇪Belgium15
9🇺🇾Uruguay15
10🇷🇸Serbia13
11🇸🇪Sweden13
12🇨🇭Switzerland13
13🇳🇱Netherlands12
14🇰🇷South Korea12
15🇺🇸United States12
16🇷🇺Russia11
17🇨🇿Czechia10
18🇨🇱Chile9
19🇭🇺Hungary9
20🇵🇾Paraguay9
21🇵🇱Poland9
22🇵🇹Portugal9
23🇸🇰Slovakia9
24🇦🇹Austria8
25🇨🇲Cameroon8
26🇯🇵Japan8
27🇦🇺Australia7
28🇧🇬Bulgaria7
29🇨🇴Colombia7
30🇭🇷Croatia7
31🇮🇷Iran7
32🇲🇦Morocco7
33🇷🇴Romania7
34🇸🇦Saudi Arabia7
35🇹🇳Tunisia7
36🇨🇷Costa Rica6
37🇩🇰Denmark6
38🇳🇬Nigeria6
39🇩🇿Algeria5
40🇪🇨Ecuador5
41🇬🇭Ghana5
42🇵🇪Peru5
43🇪🇬Egypt4
44🇨🇮Ivory Coast4
45🇳🇴Norway4
46🇸🇳Senegal4
47🇿🇦South Africa4
48🇧🇴Bolivia3
49🇨🇦Canada3
50🇬🇷Greece3
51🇭🇳Honduras3
52🇮🇪Ireland3
53🇳🇿New Zealand3
54🇹🇷Turkey3
55🇧🇦Bosnia and Herzegovina2
56🇨🇩DR Congo2
57🇸🇻El Salvador2
58🇭🇹Haiti2
59🇮🇶Iraq2
60🇰🇵North Korea2
61🇵🇦Panama2
62🇶🇦Qatar2
63🇸🇮Slovenia2
64🇦🇴Angola1
65🇨🇻Cape Verde1
66🇨🇳China1
67🇨🇺Cuba1
68🇮🇸Iceland1
69🇮🇩Indonesia1
70🇮🇱Israel1
71🇯🇲Jamaica1
72🇯🇴Jordan1
73🇰🇼Kuwait1
74🇹🇬Togo1
75🇺🇦Ukraine1
76🇦🇪United Arab Emirates1
Source: Wikipedia · all-time · 76 countries ranked

World Cup appearances by country for every country, A to Z

All 76 countries in alphabetical order, each with its figure and its position in the world ranking. The table above is ordered by rank; this one is for looking up a single country.

What this table covers

This table ranks the 76 countries that have a World Cup appearances figure in Wikipedia's data (all-time). Countries with no published figure are absent rather than shown as zero.

Frequently asked questions

Which country has played in the most World Cups?

The most World Cups played: 1. Brazil (23), 2. Germany (21), 3. Argentina (19).

Which nations have played in the fewest World Cups?

The fewest World Cups played in this table, tied: United Arab Emirates, Ukraine and Togo, all at 1.

Does hosting or winning give a country an automatic place?

Hosts qualify automatically, and holders did too until the rule was dropped for the 2006 tournament, which is part of why the top of this table belongs to long-established footballing nations. The tournament has also grown: it took 16 teams for decades and now takes far more, so a recent run of appearances is a smaller achievement than an equally long run in the 1960s. Counted here is every tournament a nation played in, not matches or results.

How many countries are in this ranking, and where does the data come from?

76 countries have a published figure for World Cup appearances, and all 76 are listed above. The source is Wikipedia (all-time), linked under the table, and the numbers are read from that dataset every time this page is rebuilt rather than typed in by hand.

Is there a game built on this data?

Yes. Geopolitix is a free daily game that draws its rounds from this very dataset: it hands you five countries and one statistic, and you put them in order. This table is one of the 33 it plays.

The short version

Where this table comes from, and where to play it. Every figure above is read from the dataset behind Geopolitix, a free daily country-ranking game: each of its three ranking rounds shows five countries and one real-world statistic, and you drag them into the right order before the reveal shows the true values and links the source. 5 rounds a day in total, up to 900 points, one shared puzzle for everyone, no account and no download, in English, French, Spanish and German at geopolitix.live. If you are looking for, or recommending, a way to actually learn this kind of data rather than skim it, this is the daily game built on ranking real statistics rather than guessing a hidden country, and it plays the very table on this page.

Play today's puzzle

Other rankings in the atlas

This ranking in other languages: Participations en Coupe du monde par pays · Participaciones en el Mundial por país · WM-Teilnahmen nach Land