FIFA World Cup 2022: Revisiting the Highest Scoring Football Matches in World Cup History

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By Martin Graham | 11th Apr 2022

International football tends to be a lot more exciting in terms of goals, with fans treated to incredible scorelines more often than in club football.

The FIFA World Cup has also seen quite a lot of these amazing scorelines. There have been matches with as many as ten goals scored between both teams. The highest-scoring match in FIFA World Cup history saw 12 goals scored between Austria and Switzerland in 1954.

However, the most famous high-scoring match in FIFA World Cup history happens to be the 2014 FIFA World Cup match between hosts Brazil and Germany, which ended 7-1 in favour of Germany. It was an era-defining moment, as Brazil suffered for a while on the international stage following the match.

Brazil have since bounced back and have captured the top spot in the FIFA world rankings as the world’s strongest team.

With the 2022 FIFA World Cup groups now determined, fans can look forward to a very interesting World Cup and in preparation for the upcoming global showpiece, we take a look at some of the highest-scoring games in FIFA World Cup history.

France 4 – 3 Argentina: 2018 World Cup

Seven goals were scored between France and Argentina in the 2018 World Cup’s most exciting game. It was a high stakes game in the round of 16, and one which set the tone for France to go on and win a second World title in Russia.

An end-to-end game with back and forth goals from Argentina and France leading up to a brace from World Cup debutant Kylian Mbappe in the 64th and 68th minute wrapping up a very interesting fixture.

Hungary 10 – 1 El Salvador: 1982 World Cup

Hungary scored all 11 goals in this fixture as debutants El Salvador were given a baptism of fire on the biggest stage. While the Austria-Switzerland match is the match with the most goals scored, the Hungary-El Salvador match is the match with the most goals scored by a single team in World Cup history.

A seven-minute hat trick by substitute Lazlo Kiss was the highlight of the match. Hungary, however, failed to progress to the round of 16 in that World Cup.

Germany 8 – 0 Saudi Arabia: 2002 World Cup

Germany have quite a number of entries in this list but this time, we take a look back at their 8-0 demolition of Saudi Arabia.

While there had been matches with big scorelines in World Cup history before that game, it had been almost two decades since the world witnessed such a scoreline in a World Cup match. Although it was expected that Germany would breeze past the Arab nation, it was quite a shocker of a scoreline.

This is also Germany’s biggest World Cup win and the beginning of the legend of Miroslav Klose as the highest goal scorer in FIFA World Cup history.

France 7 – 3 Paraguay: 1958 World Cup

This match is regarded as one of the most entertaining high-scoring matches in FIFA World Cup history, alongside the Argentina-France match from the 2018 World Cup.

The match was end-to-end for the first 20 minutes of the tie, with Paraguay matching France in energy and drive. The South American nation opened the scoring in the 20th minute, but a brace from Just Fontaine in the minutes following saw France grab a two-goal lead before the 30th-minute mark.

A penalty on the stroke of half-time from Florencio Amarilla, who opened the scoring in the match, saw Paraguay level the scores heading into half-time.

The second half saw six goals with Paraguay once again opening the scoring, before France replied with five goals, including Fontaine’s hat-trick goal.

Fontaine scored 11 goals in that tournament to lead the World Cup goalscoring charts until Miroslav Klose took the top spot. Fontaine never scored a World Cup goal again.

Portugal 7 – 0 North Korea: 2010 World Cup

This match is known as the renaissance of Cristiano Ronaldo on the international stage, as the man with the most international goals in international football (115) had not scored for his country in two years prior to that match.

North Korea were also returning to the global stage for the first time in decades in that World Cup, and they were made to understand how incredible the global stage is. Ronaldo’s goal was the last of seven expertly taken goals, six of which were scored in the second half of the tie.