80 Remarkable Soccer Facts That You Should Know

Get ready to dive into a world of fascinating soccer trivia! We’ve rounded up 80 mind-blowing facts about the beautiful game – from record-breaking transfers and legendary players to surprising stats from the Premier League and beyond.

Whether you’re a die-hard fan or just getting into soccer, these facts will give you some amazing insights into the world’s most popular sport.

General Soccer Facts

1. Soccer was invented sometime between 206 B.C. – 220 A.D. in China.
2. Soccer is the most popular sport in the world, with an estimated 4 billion global fans.
3. Soccer is played in over 200 countries around the globe.
4. The first soccer balls in Europe were made from inflated pig bladders.
5. The first soccer balls in China were made from sewn clothing with rubble inside.
6. The maximum number of players on a soccer team is 11 (including the goalie).
7. Soccer is the only major sport that doesn’t allow players (excluding goalies) to use their hands.
8. The average soccer player runs 7 miles in a 90-minute match.
9. Only 9 countries in the world use the term “soccer” over “football” to describe the game.
10. Goalkeepers started wearing different colored jerseys in 1913.
11. A goalkeeper has six seconds to get rid of the ball after he/she picks it up.
12. The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be hosted by North American countries (USA, Canada, and Mexico) in 16 different cities.
13. US Youth Soccer registers nearly 3 million players every year.

International Soccer Facts

14. Global spending on international soccer transfers reached a new record of $2.35 billion in January 2025, a 58% increase from the previous year and 47.1% higher than the previous January record set in 2023.
15. The most expensive transfer was set by Neymar Jr. when he went from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain for €222 million or $263 million.
16. In 2022, Cristiano Ronaldo signed a 2.5-year contract with Al Nassr (Saudi Arabia) worth about a whopping $200M per season.
17. The highest soccer jersey number for an official soccer competition was 121 worn by Thomas Oar.
18. Pele received his nickname because he had six toes on each foot. “Pele” means “six feet” in Brazilian Portuguese.
19. A lightning strike in 1998 killed an entire soccer team from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
20. Pele has the most goals in soccer history with 1,279.
21. Referees were not used in official soccer games until 1881. Players were responsible for making the calls on the pitch.
22. The fastest red card given in soccer history is 2 seconds. In 2000, Lee Todd of Cross Farm Park Celtic swore about the volume of the whistle.
23. Red and yellow cards were first introduced in the 1970 World Cup.
24. The “old school” black and white soccer ball had 32 shapes which stood for the 32 European nations.
25. The oldest professional club in the world is Sheffield FC which was founded in 1857 and still exists today.
26. Approximately 70% of the world’s soccer balls are made in Sialkot, Pakistan.
27. The country of Greenland has never had a team recognized by FIFA.
28. The Olympics has an age limit of 23 but they have an exception where only three players can be older.
29. The first televised game happened in 1937 when Arsenal took on England.
30. Turkey eliminated Spain from the 1954 World Cup by drawing straws.
31. Cristiano Ronaldo built a museum dedicated to himself. It’s called the CR7 Cristiano Ronaldo Museum.
32. Russian soccer player, Oleg Salenko, holds the record for most goals scored in a single World Cup match with five.
33. Marc Burrows has the fastest recorded goal scored in a professional match. It took him only 2.56 seconds to score in 2004.
34. The World Cup was made out of paper mache up until 1950.
35. European teams have reached the final of every World Cup tournament except in 1930 and 1950.
36. Qatar is the first Arabian country to host a World Cup.
37. Since 2011, Lebron James has had a 2% minority stake in Liverpool. He exchanged his shares in 2022 for part-ownership of FSG. It is estimated the value is worth £35 million in profit.
38. Soccer is an Olympic Games sport and has been since 1900 for men and 1996 for women.
39. The highest-scoring soccer match on record was 149-0, which occurred in 2002 in Madagascar. The losing side, Stade Olympique, staged a protest in the match. In reality, this wasn’t a ‘real match’.
40. The longest soccer match on record was played in England with Stockport and Doncaster Rovers. The match lasted three hours and 23 minutes.
41. In 2022, Kylian Mbappe was the highest paid soccer player in the world. He was only 23 years old.
42. The most successful national team in international competition is Brazil, who have won the World Cup a record five times.
43. Uruguay won the first World Cup in 1930. They won again in 1950 but haven’t won since.
44. Miroslav Klose of Germany has the most World Cup goals of all-time.
45. The most goals scored in a single season in the Spanish La Liga is 50, by Lionel Messi of Barcelona in 2011-2012.
46. Manchester United has the most titles (13) in the Premier League.
47. In the 2023-24 season, Real Madrid became the first soccer club to generate €1 billion in revenue.
48. Alan Shearer and Andy Cole hold the record for most goals (34) in a single 42-game season.
49. Manchester City’s Erling Haaland holds the record for most goals (36) in a single Premier League season.
50. Alan Shearer and Wayne Rooney have the most missed (11) penalties of all-time.

MLS Facts

51. The Major League Soccer (MLS) was founded in 1993 and there were only 10 teams.
52. The first MLS season started in 1996 with D.C. United defeated L.A. Galaxy for the championship.
53. There are currently 29 teams in the MLS.
54. In 2007, MLS expanded to include teams from Canada – CF Montreal, Toronto FC, and Vancouver Whitecaps FC.
55. The United States agreed to start a professional soccer league if FIFA awarded the World Cup to be hosted in the states.
56. Thirty-seven MLS players were playing in the 2022 World Cup.
57. Chris Wondolowski has the most goals (171) in MLS history.
58. Landon Donovan has the most assists (136) in MLS history. He’s also second all-time in scoring.
59. Carlos Vela has the most goals (34) in a single MLS season.
60. The New England Revolution has the most points in a single season. They totaled 73 points in the 2021 season. Carles Gil lead the Revs in this season.
61. The highest single scoring game in MLS history was 11 in 1998 between L.A. Galaxy (7 goals) and Colorado Rapids (4 goals).
62. L.A. Galaxy has the longest winning streak of all-time. From September 7, 1997 to May 17, 1998, they won 15 matches in a row.
63. In 2022, the highest paid MLS player is Chicago Fire FC’s Xherdan Shaqiri with an annual salary of $8,153,000. In 2023 Lionel Messi became the highest MLS paid player with a whopping $20,446,667.
64. In 2023, the average MLS salary for a player was $530,262.
65. MLS is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (USSF).
66. MLS NEXT was created in 2020 to complete the pathway from youth soccer to the professional level.
67. The most successful MLS team is the Los Angeles Galaxy, who have won the MLS Cup a record 5 times.
68. In 2024, MLS set a new regular-season attendance record, surpassing 11 million fans, with an average of 23,240 fans per game. High-profile matches, such as those featuring Lionel Messi, contributed significantly to this milestone
69. The highest incoming transfer fee paid for an MLS player was $16 million, which was paid by Atlanta United for Thiago Almada in 2022.

Women’s Soccer Facts

70. Since 1991, U.S. National Women’s Soccer has won four titles and a runner-up in eight of the World Cups.
71. The University of North Carolina (UNC) has won 21 national championships in women’s soccer.
72. The Women’s United Soccer Association (WUSA) was formed in 2001. Eight teams participated and two years later it was dissolved.
73. The first recorded women’s soccer match took place in 1895 in Scotland.
74. The highest attendance for a women’s soccer match was 91,553 when Barcelona played Real Madrid in 2022. The previous record was held when USA took on China in the 1999 World Cup Final.
75. The highest transfer fee paid for a female soccer player is £470,000, which was paid by Barcelona for Keira Walsh in 2022.
76. The 1991 Women’s World Cup was only 80-minute matches. They added 10 more minutes to make it the same as men’s in subsequent years.
77. China was supposed to host the 2003 Women’s World Cup but it had to be moved to the U.S. because of the SARS outbreak.
78. Carli Lloyd is the highest-paid female soccer player in the world with an annual salary of $518,000.
79. The current top-tier professional women’s soccer league in the United States is the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), which was founded in 2012.
80. In 2024, the Kansas City Current became the first team to sell out every home game.