The Oldest Players to Ever Play at a World Cup
- Apr 16
- 3 min read
Updated: Apr 23
The average World Cup player is somewhere between 25 and 30 years old. But a handful of footballers have pushed well beyond that, pulling on their shirt and stepping out at the biggest tournament in the world while well into their forties to defy betting odds.
Let’s take a look at the oldest players in World Cup history.
Peter Shilton, England - 40 years old
Shilton was 40 years and 292 days old when he played his 125th and final England game, a third-place play-off defeat to Italy at the 1990 World Cup. That tally of 125 caps remains the most any England player has ever earned, a record built across a 20-year international career spanning from 1970 to 1990.
He's also the man Maradona beat with the Hand of God in 1986, a moment Shilton has spent the decades since refusing to move on from. A brilliant keeper, an unfortunate footnote, and proof that even at 40, you can still be playing on the biggest stage in the world.
Pat Jennings, Northern Ireland: 41 years old
Pat Jennings celebrated his 41st birthday on the day he played against Brazil at the 1986 World Cup. Brazil won 3-0, and Jennings retired afterwards, finishing with 119 caps for his country. He later became the first player in British football to make 1,000 senior appearances, a feat that still makes for one of the more remarkable sports tips of trivia in the game's history.
Roger Milla, Cameroon: 42 years old
The most famous name on this list, and the only outfield player in it. Milla had effectively retired before the Cameroon president personally persuaded him to come back for the 1990 World Cup, where he scored four goals as a substitute and helped Cameroon become the first African nation to reach the quarter-finals.
Four years later, at 42, he came back again. In a 6-1 defeat to Russia in 1994, Milla scored Cameroon's only goal, making him the oldest goalscorer in World Cup history. That record still stands. He scored 43 goals in 77 international appearances across a career spanning more than two decades and was named in the FIFA 100 list of the greatest living players.
Faryd Mondragon, Colombia: 43 years old
Mondragon's record moment came with five minutes to go in Colombia's final group game against Japan in 2014, when head coach Jose Pekerman brought him on to give him one last moment in the sun.
He was 43 years and three days old. But what makes his story genuinely strange is the gap. Having played all three of Colombia's group games at the 1998 World Cup in France, the gap of 15 years and 363 days between his two World Cup appearances is still the longest any player has had to wait between games.
Essam El-Hadary, Egypt: 45 years old
Nobody has come close to El-Hadary, who started Egypt's final group match against Saudi Arabia at the 2018 World Cup at 45 years and 161 days old, becoming the oldest player ever to appear at a World Cup. What is even more fascinating is that he was also making his World Cup debut.
It wasn't a quiet cameo either. He became the first African goalkeeper to save a penalty at the tournament after making a spectacular stop from Fahad Al-Muwallad’s spot kick in the 39th minute.
Egypt still lost 2-1, but that save went around the world. El-Hadary was older than three of the coaches at the 2018 World Cup, including Roberto Martinez of Belgium. His career with Egypt spanned 159 caps across 22 years, and his gloves from that Saudi Arabia match are now on display at the FIFA World Football Museum.