Association football is the most popular sport in nearly every European country, and UEFA, the governing body of European football, is one of the six continental confederations that constitute FIFA. UEFA contains 55 national association members, some of which are partially or entirely located in Asia. A total of 33 of the current members of UEFA have competed at the FIFA World Cup, while the defunct East Germany qualified once, in 1974.
European nations have won the FIFA World Cup a record 13 times, with Germany and Italy winning four times, France and Spain winning twice each, and England once. UEFA countries have hosted the finals eleven times.
Every edition of the tournament has had at least one European nation finishing in the top four.
Overview
1930(13) 1934(16) 1938(15) 1950(13) 1954(16) 1958(16) 1962(16) 1966(16) 1970(16) 1974(16) 1978(16) 1982(24) 1986(24) 1990(24) 1994(24) 1998(32) 2002(32) 2006(32) 2010(32) 2014(32) 2018(32) 2022(32) 2026(48) 2030(48) 2034(48) Total Teams 272 Top 32 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — 13 13 Top 16 — — — — — — — — — — — 10 10 10 10 10 9 10 6 6 10 8 7 106 Top 8 — 8 6 — 6 7 6 5 4 6 5 5 6 7 6 4 6 3 4 6 5 6 111 Top 4 1 4 3 2 3 3 2 4 2 3 2 4 3 3 3 3 2 4 3 2 4 2 3 65 Top 2 0 2 2 0 2 1 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 1 2 1 1 30 1st 13 2nd 17 3rd 19 4th 16
Team No. Years Best result 21 1934, 1938, 1954, 1958, 1962, 1966, 1970, 1974, 1978, 1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, 2026 1st 18 1934, 1938, 1950, 1954, 1962, 1966, 1970, 1974, 1978, 1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014 1st 17 1930, 1934, 1938, 1954, 1958, 1966, 1978, 1982, 1986, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, 2026 1st 17 1934, 1950, 1962, 1966, 1978, 1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, 2026 1st 17 1950, 1954, 1958, 1962, 1966, 1970, 1982, 1986, 1990, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, 2026 1st 15 1930, 1934, 1938, 1954, 1970, 1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2014, 2018, 2022, 2026 3rd 13 1934, 1938, 1950, 1958, 1970, 1974, 1978, 1990, 1994, 2002, 2006, 2018, 2026 2nd 13 1930, 1950, 1954, 1958, 1962, 1974, 1982, 1990, 1998, 2006, 2010, 2018, 2022 4th 13 1934, 1938, 1950, 1954, 1962, 1966, 1994, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, 2026 QF 12 1934, 1938, 1974, 1978, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2022, 2026 2nd 11 1958, 1962, 1966, 1970, 1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, 2002, 2014, 2018 4th 10 1934, 1938, 1954, 1958, 1962, 1970, 1982, 1990, 2006, 2026 2nd 9 1934, 1938, 1954, 1958, 1962, 1970, 1982, 1990, 2010 2nd 9 1934, 1938, 1954, 1958, 1962, 1966, 1978, 1982, 1986 2nd 9 1938, 1974, 1978, 1982, 1986, 2002, 2006, 2018, 2022 3rd 9 1966, 1986, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, 2026 3rd 9 1954, 1958, 1974, 1978, 1982, 1986, 1990, 1998, 2026 GS 8 1934, 1954, 1958, 1978, 1982, 1990, 1998, 2026 3rd 7 1998, 2002, 2006, 2014, 2018, 2022, 2026 2nd 7 1962, 1966, 1970, 1974, 1986, 1994, 1998 4th 7 1930, 1934, 1938, 1970, 1990, 1994, 1998 QF 6 1986, 1998, 2002, 2010, 2018, 2022 QF 4 1938, 1994, 1998, 2026 QF 3 1954, 2002, 2026 3rd 3 1958, 1982, 1986 QF 3 1990, 1994, 2002 QF 3 1994, 2010, 2014 R16 2 1958, 2022 QF 2 2002, 2010 GS 2 2014, 2026 R32 1 2006 QF 1 1974 GS2 1 2018 GS (1970) GS Bold indicates year(s) of best finish
Results Tournament standings +Performance of each nation Team Champions Final Semi-finals Quarter-finals Round of 16 Round of 32 4 8 13 17 9 1 4 6 8 8 7 0 2 4 8 10 8 1 2 2 3 6 10 1 1 1 4 11 10 1 0 3 5 7 7 1 0 2 2 5 0 0 0 2 2 4 1 0 0 2 2 4 1 0 0 1 4 6 4 1 0 1 3 3 3 1 0 0 2 5 2 0 0 0 2 4 8 1 0 0 2 3 4 1 0 0 2 3 1 1 0 0 2 2 3 0 0 0 1 5 3 0 0 0 1 1 2 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 4 6 1 0 0 0 1 4 0 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 0 0 1 2 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 colspan=2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Team results by tournament The team ranking in each tournament is according to FIFA. The rankings, apart from the top four positions (top two in 1930), are not a result of direct competition between the teams; instead, teams eliminated in the same round are ranked by their full results in the tournament.
For each tournament, the number of teams in each finals tournament (in brackets) are shown.
+FIFA World Cup results of UEFA members Team1930(13)1934(16)1938(15)1950(13)1954(16)1958(16)1962(16)1966(16)1970(16)1974(16)1978(16)1982(24)1986(24)1990(24)1994(24)1998(32)2002(32)2006(32)2010(32)2014(32)2018(32)2022(32)2026(48)2030(48)2034(48)Total (up to 2026)Qual.Comp. 4th ••×3rd GS ••• GS2 GS2 • GS • GS •••••• R32 TBDTBD 8 20 GS R16 R16 × GS ••• GS•• GS2 4th R16 R16 GS R16 ••QF 3rd GS QF TBDTBD 15 22 colspan=14 •••• GS •• R32 TBDTBD 2 8 •×• •• GS GS GS GS1 •• R16 •4th GS •••••••TBDTBD 7 21 colspan=14 3rd GS GS • GS 2nd 3rd R32 TBDTBD 7 8 2nd QF GS GS 2nd • GS •• GS1 •QF ••• GS •••• GS TBDTBD 10 21 • ••••• R16 ••QF R16 • GS • R16 GS •TBDTBD 6 17 colspan=3 •••• GS2 ••••colspan=11 1 9 colspan=3 GS QF GS QF 1st QF •• GS2 QF 4th • R16 QF QF R16 GS 4th QF 3rd TBDTBD 17 20 GS R16 QF • GS 3rd • GS •• GS1 4th 3rd ••1st GS 2nd GS QF 1st 2nd 4th TBDTBD 17 23 3rd R16 1st 4th QF 2nd 3rd 1st GS2 2nd 2nd 1st QFQF 2nd 3rd 3rd 1st GS GS R32 TBDTBD 21 21 •×• •••••••••• GS ••• GS R16 •••TBDTBD 3 21 QF 2nd 2nd GS QF QF •• GS1 GS1 GS ••••••••••TBDTBD 9 21 colspan=4 ו ••••••••••• GS ••TBDTBD 1 15 ••••••• GS ••••••••••••••TBDTBD 1 22 member of AFC OFC OFC 1st 1st GS GS • GS GS 2nd GS1 4th 1st R16 3rd 2nd QF R16 1st GS GS •••TBDTBD 18 22 R16 R16 ••••2nd 2nd •• R16 QF 4th • R16 2nd 3rd •QF R32 TBDTBD 12 20 colspan=3 ••QF ••••• GS2 GS ••••••••••TBDTBD 3 20 R16 •••••••••• GS R16 ••••••QF TBDTBD 4 20 •× R16 ו•••3rd GS2 3rd R16 ••• GS GS •• GS R16 •TBDTBD 9 20 ••••••3rd •••• GS ••• GS 4th R16 GS R16 QF R16 Q TBD 9 22 ••••••••••••QF R16 • R16 ••••••TBDTBD 3 22 GS R16 R16 •••• GS •••• R16 QF R16 •••••••TBDTBD 7 22 QF QF 4th QF •×• GS2 R16 GS GS • GS •• GS QF •××TBDTBD 11 17 colspan=3 •• GS GS ••• GS1 GS1 GS1 GS GS • GS •••••• GS TBDTBD 9 20 4th •• GS QF QF 4th •• GS2 • GS1 •QF × R16 • GS GS • GS GS •TBDTBD 13 22 2nd QF GS GS 2nd • GS •• GS1 •QF ••• • R16 ••••TBDTBD 9 21 colspan=14 • GS • GS ••••TBDTBD 2 8 QF ×4th •• GS GS •• GS1 GS2 QF R16 QF GS QF R16 1st GS R16 R16 1st QTBD 17 21 QF 4th 3rd •2nd •• GS GS2 GS1 •• GS 3rd • R16 R16 ••QF • R32 TBDTBD 13 22 QF QF GS QF • GS GS •••••• R16 •• R16 GS R16 R16 R16 QF TBDTBD 13 22 × •• GS ו•••••••••3rd ••••• GS TBDTBD 3 19 colspan=14 ••QF •••••TBDTBD 1 8 colspan=3 ••QF ••••••••••••••• GS •TBDTBD 2 20 Legend
1stChampions2ndRunners-up3rdThird place4thFourth placeQFQuarter-finals (1934–1938, 1954–1970, 1986–present)R16Knockout round of 16 (1934–1938, 1986–present)R32Knockout round of 32 (2026–present)GSGroup stage (1930, 1950–1970, 1986–present)GS1First group stage (1974–1982)GS2Second group stage (1974–1982)
QQualified for upcoming tournamentTBDTo be determined (may still qualify for upcoming tournament)••Qualified but withdrew•Did not qualify•×Withdrew or disqualified during qualification (after playing matches)×Withdrew before qualification / Banned / Entry not accepted by FIFAHostsDid not enterstyle="width:10px" Not a FIFA member
Overall team records As per statistical convention in football, matches decided in extra time are counted as wins and losses, while matches decided by penalty shoot-outs are counted as draws. 3 points per win, 1 point per draw and 0 points per loss.
Team 21116702224243135+108232188345211712877+51156178145142215695+61149178238232112480+44137177538181912276+46132125932161110757+5011215572412218381+28413552014218783+47411451910167754+2367940198136944+2565134918922717106313471710206579−1461938176154950−157734158114940+953932153148757+3048833135154956−744934126164952−3421036126184955−6426239683129+2337218583032−22992657142645−19224146352019+1213136162322+11972638152253−311731328310100143133551323−1014162225508310226520−1581521257−2727214912−3728143510−5726114510−541302113−221301225−31
Breakdown of successor team records
+/ breakdown Team 830115144445−138 26114510−54 1411257−24
+ breakdown Team 263121413+110 106236141213177+54122 948317109845+53100
+ breakdown Team 731156105334+1951 4144462420+416
+ breakdown Team 833147125542+1349 1421154+17 13003210−80 39216915−67
Appearances
Ranking of teams by number of appearances Team Appearances Record streak Active streak Debut Most recent Best result (* = hosts) 21 19 19 1934 2026 (1954, 1974*, 1990, 2014) 18 14 0 1934 2014 (1934*, 1938, 1982, 2006) 17 8 8 1950 2026 (1966*) 17 8 8 1930 2026 (1998*, 2018) 17 13 13 1934 2026 (2010, 2026) 15 6 4 1930 2026 (2018) 13 6 6 1934 2026 (1934, 1938, 1954*, 2026) 13 4 0 1930 2022 (1930, 1962) 13 3 1 1934 2026 (1958*) 12 3 2 1934 2026 (1974, 1978, 2010) 11 4 0 1958 2018 (1966) 10 3 1 1934 2026 (1934, 1962) 9 7 7 1966 2026 (1966) 9 5 1 1954 2026 9 4 0 1938 2022 (1974, 1982) 9 4 0 1934 1986 (1938, 1954) 9 3 0 1934 2010 (1934, 1962) 8 2 1 1934 2026 (1954) 7 4 4 1998 2026 (2018) 7 4 0 1962 1998 (1994) 7 3 0 1930 1998 (1994) 6 2 0 1986 2022 (1998) 4 2 1 1938 2026 (2026) 3 2 0 1958 1986 (1958) 3 2 0 1990 2002 (1990) 3 2 0 1994 2014 (2014) 3 1 1 1954 2026 (2002) 2 1 1 2014 2026 (2026) 2 1 0 1958 2022 (1958) 2 1 0 2002 2010 1 1 0 1970 1970 1 1 1974 1974 (1974) 1 1 0 2006 2006 (2006) 1 1 0 2018 2018
/ breakdown Team Appearances Record streak Active streak Debut Most recent Best result 8 3 — 1934 1990 (1934, 1962) 2 1 1 2006 2026 1 1 0 2010 2010
breakdown Team Appearances Record streak Active streak Debut Most recent Best result (* = hosts) 7 4 — 1958 1990 (1966) 4 2 0 1994 2018 (2018*)
breakdown Team Appearances Record streak Active streak Debut Most recent Best result (* = hosts) 2 2 — 1934 1938 (1934) 10 10 10 1954 1990 (1954, 1974*, 1990) 9 9 9 1994 2026 (2014)
breakdown Team Appearances Record streak Active streak Debut Most recent Best result 8 4 — 1930 1990 (1930, 1962) 1 1 — 1998 1998 1 1 — 2006 2006 3 2 0 2010 2022
Team debuts
Year Debutants Total 1930 , , , 4 1934 , , , , , , , , 9 1938 , 2 1950 1 1954 , 2 1958 , , 3 1962 1 1966 1 1974 1 1986 1 1990 1 1994 1 1998 1 2002 1 2006 1 2010 1 2014 12018 1Total 33
*This total number of UEFA teams which have participated in the World Cups through 2018 is 34, using FIFA's view on successor teams (e.g., Russia is a successor of USSR and not a separate team, whereas Ukraine is a newer separate entity).
Not qualified 22 of the 55 active FIFA and UEFA members have never qualified for the final tournament.
+European teams who have yet to qualify Team Number of qualifyingattempts 1930 1934 1938 1950 1954 1958 1962 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022 2026 2030 2034 22 ••••••••••••••••••••••TBDTBD 21 •••••••••••••••••••••TBDTBD 17 colspan=3 ו••••••••••••••••TBDTBD 14 •×• ••••••••••••TBDTBD 14 colspan=6 ••••••••••••••TBDTBD 11 •• colspan=11 •••••••••TBDTBD 11 •• colspan=11 •••••••••TBDTBD 10 • colspan=11 •••••••••TBDTBD 9 colspan=13 •••••••••TBDTBD 9 colspan=13 •••••••••TBDTBD 8 colspan=14 ••••••••TBDTBD 8 colspan=14 ••••••••TBDTBD 8 colspan=14 ••••••••TBDTBD 8 colspan=14 ••••••••TBDTBD 8 rowspan=2 colspan=14 rowspan=2 ••••••••TBDTBD Member of AFC 8 colspan=9 ו•••••••TBDTBD 8 colspan=3 colspan=11 ••••••••TBDTBD 8 colspan=14 ••••••••TBDTBD 7 colspan=15 •••••••TBDTBD 5 colspan=14 colspan=4 •••••TBDTBD 3 colspan=20 •••TBDTBD 3 colspan=14 colspan=4 colspan=2 •••TBDTBD 1 colspan=3 • colspan=12 colspan=8
Legend TBDTo be determined (may still qualify for upcoming tournament)•Did not qualify×Withdrew before qualification / Banned / Entry not accepted by FIFADid not enterstyle="width:10px" Not a FIFA member
Notes
References
See also World Football Elo Ratings FIFA World Cup records and statistics