List of men's footballers with 1,000 or more official appearances



In association football, at least 48 players have played at least 1,000 official matches at all age levels. Regarding youth football, only matches with national teams are counted, as such data for club levels cannot be found for the majority of the players. Regarding B teams and reserve teams, appearances for such teams are only included if made in the primary football pyramid and not in reserve divisions. War-time results are also excluded if they were later regarded as unofficial by the relevant Football Association(s); if they were included, Billy Meredith would be the first ever player to have played in 1,000 official matches and Stanley Matthews would also make the list.

English goalkeeper Peter Shilton holds the record for the most appearances, making over 1,400 appearances between the 1960s and 1990s, including a national record of 125 appearances for England, and in 1996 became the first footballer to make 1,000 league appearances. In March 2022, Robert Carmona from Uruguay was recognized as the oldest active footballer by Guinness World Records  and was reported as having played around 2,200 official matches,   a total that would place him at the top of the list by far; however, due to a lack of details about the distribution of these matches per year and team, or even which teams he played for,  he cannot currently be added to the list.

Ranking
As of 15:35, 21 July 2024 (UTC)

NOTE: Only professional and notable players who had a professional career are included.

Bold indicates the player is currently active.

+ indicates there may be more matches.

Notes

RSSSF's list

 * Bold indicates players currently active.
 * + indicates number is a lower bound; player may have played more matches.

Notes

IFFHS' list

 * Bold indicates players currently active.

Notes