By The huge amount of joy and excitement it brings to the fans when the much-awaited World Cup comes around every 4 years. Football fans keep aside Club rivalries during this time and are enthralled and dominated by the matches of the World Cup. Indeed it is every squad’s dream to compete in this prestigious event as it is regarded as the most popular and biggest sports event in the world.
Each squad feels immense pride to represent their respective country in the World Cup. Because this massive event happens only every four years, players engage themselves in years of training before the squad takes part in the qualifying matches. However, not all the squads will be competing in the World Cup. Out of all the 221 teams, only 32 teams are selected to compete in the FIFA World Cup. As of now, 80 national teams have played at the final tournaments. So let’s take a look at the five most popular countries to ever play in FIFA.
- Brazil- 22 Appearances
The Brazilian National Team is the most successful squad in the history of the FIFA World Cup and is currently in the top one in the FIFA Men’s World Ranking list. The team is a five-time World Cup champ and has made the most appearance in the World Cup. In 1930, ever since the inaugural edition, the Brazilian National Team participated in all twenty-one editions of the biggest event with their most recent victory back in 2022. They won the World Cup in the years 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, and 2002. The Seleção Canarinho is the only squad to emerge as the World Cup champ in 4 different continents.
- Germany- 20 Appearances
Germany’s most recent win at the World Cup was in 2014 and is ranked No. 2 on this list. In 1934, the Germans took part in their maiden World Cup and secured their first victory in 1954 as West Germany followed by their second and third wins in 1974 and 1990 respectively as West Germany and their fourth win in 2014 as a unified Germany. Die Mannschaft is regarded as one of the most consistent squads in the history of football sporting events. This squad also holds the record for making it into the semi-final appearances in the history of the event with 13 appearances so far. They hold four World Cup titles.
- Argentina- 18 Appearances
Argentina National Team, which is one of the most favored teams in the world according to fans, is a two-time World Cup champ and has appeared in twelve consecutive editions since 1974. In the inaugural edition in 1930, the Albicelestes made it to the World Cup final but lost to Uruguay. They again lost to Germany in the World Cup final in 2014. The first time they lifted the cup was in 1978 and the second time was in 1986. The only time the Albicelestes failed to qualify for the tournament was in 1938, 1950, 1954, and 1970.
- Italy- 18 Appearances
Many would find it shocking to learn that the Italy National Team which is considered one of the finest teams in football history and holds four World Cup titles (1935, 1938, 1982, 2006) did not even qualify for the 2022 World Cup hosted by Qatar. However, they have still managed to make 18 appearances in the World Cup.
- Mexico- 17 Appearances
Even though El Tri has managed to make 17 appearances at the World Cup, they still haven’t won or even reached the semi-finals. The closest they have reached is the quarter-finals while playing in their home ground in 1970 and 1986.
