Top 25 Best Soccer Countries of All Time

If you enjoy soccer, then you’ll enjoy our list of the top 25 best soccer countries of all time.

We know that most of you are currently sad that the United States didn’t manage to qualify for the World Cup 2018 in Russia, but life goes on. You may contribute it to poor coaching, lack of engagement, but the fact is that the United States is not among the best soccer countries 2017. It also isn’t the best country to learn soccer, so the future of U.S. soccer is getting endangered. The U.S. Soccer Federation should begin with changing things around like Serbia did for example. In case you want to know more about Serbian soccer, check out our list of 11 best Serbian soccer players of all time.

If someone would ask you to give him a list of countries that play soccer, you can just show the map of the world. The fact is that every country now plays soccer, but if you wonder where is soccer most popular in the world, the answer would be Europe and South America. These countries have the best players in the world and have won all the World Cups between themselves. So, take a look at the map of best football countries in the world. They are also an answer to the question “which country produces the best soccer players?” If you are more interested in details, you can check out our list of 7 countries that produce the best soccer players in the world. As for the best soccer players from each country list, you’ll have to wait a bit more.

In order to create this list of top 25 best soccer countries of all time, we decided to take into consideration the achievements country has made in soccer. Each country received four points for World Cup wins, two points for continental cup wins, and if their player received a Ballon d’Or award (the most prestigious individual award in soccer), they got additional two points. We summed it all into our IM Score and got our list. Let’s check it out. We are starting off with the last two countries which share the 24th place.

24. Paraguay

IM Score: 4 points

Paraguay, like many other South American countries, has a good soccer history, though it may not always show in results. However, Paraguay’s national team won Copa América on two occasions, in 1953 and 1979.

24. Denmark

IM Score: 4 points

During the 1980s, Danish team has already been viewed as a competitive side, culminating with their triumph in 1992 UEFA European Championship against Germany. That trophy alongside Allan Simonsen, Balloon d’Or winner, managed to get them a place on our list.

Up next on our list of top 25 best soccer countries of all time we have four countries which share the 20th place.

20. Iran

IM Score: 6 points

Though for some it may come as a surprise to see Iran on this list, their national team is actually one of the most successful national teams in Asia. They have won AFC Asian Cup three times, in 1968, 1972 and 1976.

20. Saudi Arabia

IM Score: 6 points

Along with Iran, Saudi Arabia is considered to be one of the best teams in Asia with three AFC Asian Cup won in 1984, 1988 and 1996. While Saudi Arabia lacks experience in FIFA World Cup competitions, their continental cup victories really made them stand out.

20. Nigeria

IM Score: 6 points

Nigeria gained its points by winning the Africa Cup of Nations three times, in 1980, 1994 and 2013. Even though they lack some major trophies, their national team has seen several great players throughout the years such as Jay-Jay Okocha, Nwankwo Kanu, and John Obi Mikel.

20. Czechoslovakia/Czech Republic

IM Score: 6 points

Winning the UEFA European Championship in 1976 as Czechoslovakia also won them 2 points, but additional 4 points were secured by country’s Balloon d’Or winners, Josef Masopust in 1962 and Pavel Nedvěd in 2003.

We are continuing our list of top 25 best soccer countries of all time with 17th place and three countries which share it.

17. Japan

IM Score: 8 points

Japan is by far the most successful Asian national team, having won AFC Asian Cup four times, in 1992, 2000, 2004 and 2011, which was enough to make it in the top 20 of our list.

17. Ghana

IM Score: 8 points

Another African team that made it on our list of top 25 best soccer countries of all time is Ghana. They can boast with numerous successes in their attempts to reach finals in FIFA World Cup, but what secured them the spot are their African Cup of Nations trophies, which they won four times, in 1963, 1965, 1978 and 1982.

17. Soviet Union/Russia

IM Score: 8 points

The Soviet Union may be a strange name for this list, but FIFA officially considers Russian national team as their successor. Their 8 points came from the victory at UEFA European Nations’ Cup (now called UEFA European Championship) in 1960 and two Balloon d’Or’s worth, brought by Lev Yashin in 1963 and Oleg Blokhin in 1975, who is also the player with most caps, 112, and Soviet Union’s top scorer with 42 goals.

The next three best soccer countries of all time on our list share the 14th place.

14. New Zealand

IM Score: 10 points

Next on the list is New Zealand, which can be viewed as strange, because most of their clubs are semi-professional rather than fully professional. However, despite all of this they can still boast as the most successful team in OFC Nations Cup, having won 5 times.

14. Australia

IM Score: 10 points

We have New Zealand’s neighbor on our list of top 25 best soccer countries of all time as well. The interesting thing is that after winning OFC Nations Cup for four times between 1980 and 2004, the country asked to play in AFC Asian Cup and won it in 2015, bringing its tally to 10 points.

14. Cameroon

IM Score: 10 points

Besides the five Africa Cup of Nations titles, Cameroon also can be proud of their World Cup campaigns. They became the first African nation that managed to reach the quarter-final in the competition.

13. United States

IM Score: 12 points

The USMNT found most of its success on the CONCACAF Championship & Gold Cup, which they have won six times. The country has had 10 appearances on the World Cup as well, with the best result coming in 1930 when the first competition was held in Uruguay.

And now, let’s see which four countries share the 9th place on our list of top 25 best soccer countries of all time.

9. Egypt

IM Score: 14 points

Egypt is the final African country on the list, and the one with most Africa Cup of Nations wins, currently sitting at seven. Their last win came in 2010. The country also participated in the World Cup 3 times but didn’t manage to leave a mark.

9. Mexico

IM Score: 14 points

During Mexico’s 16 appearances at the World Cup, the country managed to advance to the quarterfinals on two occasions, 1970 and 1986, both of which were held in Mexico. This is also the only country that has more CONCACAF Championship & Gold Cup wins than the United States of America with seven.

9. England

IM Score: 14 points

As we enter the top 10 of our list, we won’t be having countries besides Europe and South America. Since England has the best soccer league in the world, you would think it also excels in soccer. Well, it isn’t the case. The main reasons for England’s entry on our list are their only trophy won at 1966 FIFA World Cup (which they hosted) and players like Kevin Keegan and Bobby Charlton, who won the Ballon d’Or.

9. Portugal

IM Score: 14 points

One of the best soccer players in the world currently is Christiano Ronaldo, who not only helped the team to win the most recent UEFA European Championship but also has five Ballon d’Ors to push Portugal further down our list. Another legendary Portuguese player, Eusébio added one Award to help out.

7. Netherlands

IM Score: 16 points

Netherlands were three times runner-ups in the World Cup but didn’t manage to win any. They did, however, won the UEFA European championship in 1988. Still, the majority of their points come from Johan Cruyff and Marco Van Basten, who won three Ballon d’Ors each.

7. Spain

IM Score: 16 points

Spain is now one of the biggest soccer nations in the World, sharing a record in most consecutive undefeated matches with Brazil. The country managed a win at the 2010 World Cup while adding back-to-back European titles in 2008 and 2012. When it comes to Ballon d’Ors, Luis Suarez won one while Argentina native Alfredo di Stefano added two.

6. France

IM Score: 20 points

Just like Spain, France also has one World Cup trophy (from 1998) and was crowned UEFA European Champions in 1984 and 2000.  The country, however, has more Ballon d’Or winners including former president of the UEFA, Michel Platini, who won three of them.

5. Italy

IM Score: 28 points

As you can see, there is a big gap between the top five and the rest of our list of Top 25 Best Soccer Countries of All Time. Italy has a rich soccer history; including being one of the two countries who managed to defend their World Cup titles. Italy managed to do so in 1934 and 1938 while adding wins in 1986 and 2006.

4. Germany

IM Score: 36 points

Gary Lineker once said that soccer is a game in which “Germans always win.” Recently, it was like that. The country did not only manage to win the 2014 World Cup to have four in total but also embarrassed the hosts Brazil with a 7-1 victory in the process. Germany also has three UEFA European Championships, with the last coming in 1996.

3. Uruguay

IM Score: 38 points

Narrowly beating Germany for the top three on our list of top 25 best soccer countries of all time, Uruguay won two World Cups, including the first one in 1930, which the nation also organized. Although they don’t have Ballon d’Or winners, Uruguay has won record 15 Copa Américas.

And finally, let’s see the top two best soccer countries of all time which share the first place on our list.

1. Argentina

IM Score: 46 points

Close second nation in Copa América wins, with 14, is Argentina. The country is also backed with two World Cup wins that came in 1978 and 1986. Now, it is up to Messi to try and bring another World Cup win to the country, since he already has five Ballon d’Ors. His next chance for that is in the upcoming World Cup in Russia.

1. Brazil

IM Score: 46 points

We will finish off our list of top 25 best soccer countries of all time with a country that lives for soccer. It is one of the most important things in Brazil, and that attitude led to five World Cup wins, last of them being in 2002, in times of Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, and Rivaldo. Brazil also won seven Copa América and has the best soccer player in history, Pele. What else do you need?