The Most Capped Brazilian Footballers Ever

In fact, some of

Brazil's most capped players

like Cafu, Ronaldo, and Neymar are also among the greatest Brazilian footballers of all time, too. And the rest? At least they are among the most capped Brazilian footballers ever, if not among the best Brazilian footballers of all time.

Cafu and Ronaldo are also on the list of top 10 Brazilian players of all time - we mean actually best Brazil XI of all time - and Neymar and Ronaldo on the list of Brazil’s top scorers of all time. You see, these lists share players with each other, and a player like Ronaldo who is on all the three lists mentioned above - we mean the list of most capped Brazilian footballers ever, best Brazil XI of all time, and Brazil’s top scorers of all time - should indeed be called one of the greatest Brazilian footballers of all time, too.

The List of the Most Capped Brazilian Footballers Ever

Who do you think has made the most number of appearances for Brazil national football team? Well, that’s Cafu, but what about the rest of the list? Stay with us to know.

Cafu (142 Caps)

Number one on the list of

most capped Brazilian footballers ever

who is also among the top 10 Brazilian players of all time, Cafu made a total of 142 appearances for the Brazilian national team between 1990 and 2006 and also scored 5 goals for them during this time. Cafu took part in 4 editions of FIFA World Cup, namely the 1994, 1998, 2002, and 2006 editions of the competition, with the Brazilian national team and actually won the 1994 and 2002 editions with them captaining Brazil national team in the latter. He’s actually the only footballer in the world to have appeared in three consecutive World Cup finals: The 1994, 1998, and 2002 World Cup finals, as you might have guessed.

Although Cafu is the most capped Brazilian footballer to this date with 142 appearances for the Brazilian national team, it might be interesting for you to know that half of these appearances (exactly 73 of them) were in international friendlies and also all the goals Cafu scored for Brazil were in these friendlies. Cafu made a total of 48 appearances for the

in World Cup competitions from which 28 took place in World Cup qualification rounds and 20 in the World Cup group stage and play-offs.

He also made 18 and 3 appearances for his country’s national team in Copa America and Confederations Cup, respectively. During his service to the Brazilian national team, Cafu also provided 10 assists, received 23 yellow cards, and two red cards from the second yellow cards he received. Cafu is considered as one of the greatest right backs Brazil has ever had.

Roberto Carlos (125 Caps)

Only 17 caps behind Cafu on the list of most capped Brazilian footballers ever, Roberto Carlos made a total of 125 appearances between 1992 and 2006 and also scored 11 goals for them - at least more than Cafu if not more than other footballers on the list! Just like Cafu, Roberto Carlos was also a defender but a left back. He played for top European clubs,

and Inter Milan, during his career and is indeed remembered as a Real Madrid player since he actually served the club for 11 years while he only played for a year or two for the other clubs he served during his career.

Carlos took part in three editions of FIFA World Cup, namely the 1998, 2002, and 2006 editions of the competition, with the Brazilian national team but unlike Cafu he never captained his country’s national team. Carlos’s best results with the Brazilian national team in FIFA World Cup competitions was winning the 2002 World Cup and finishing as runners-up in the 1998 edition of the competition.

From among the 125 appearances Carlos made for Brazil 56 (44.8%) were at international friendlies, 27 (21.6%) at World Cup qualification rounds, 17 (13.6%) at World Cup group stage and playoff, 21 (16.8%) at Copa America, and 4 (3.2%) at Confederations Cup. As you see, a total of 44 appearances (35.2%) of all the Carlos’ appearances for his country’s national team were at World Cup competitions. Other than the 11 goals Carlos scored for the Brazilian national team, he also provided 10 assists and received 11 yellow cards and one direct red card during his service to them. Although not as big as Cafu, Carlos is also one of the top defenders Brazil has ever produced.

Dani Alves (118 Caps)

The third most capped Brazilian footballer to this date, Dani Alves is a 38-year-old defender - actually right back - who has served top European clubs like

, Barcelona, and PSG during his club career. Alves is actually the first footballer on the list of Brazil's most capped players who, despite his old age, is still in the business which means he might probably make more appearances for the Brazilian national team and improve his cap record that we will surely update you with.

For now - we mean up to this date, Alves has made a total of 118 appearances and has scored 8 goals for the Brazilian national team. He has also made 17 appearances for Brazil U20 team and 5 appearances for Brazil Olympic team. From among all the 118 appearances Alves has made for Brazil, 56 (47.4%) have been at international friendlies, 35 (29.6%) at World Cups from which 26 were actually at World qualification rounds and 9 at World Cup group stage and play-offs, 19 at

, and 8 at Confederations Cup. Alves also received a total of 17 yellow cards and a second yellow card which led to a red card in all the appearances that he made for his country’s national team.

The 38-year-old Brazilian defender took part in 2 editions of FIFA World Cup, namely the 2010 and 2014 editions of the competition, with the Brazilian national team. He also took part in 2018 World Cup qualifying round but a knee injury prevented him from further playing for his country’s national team at the same competition. It should also be mentioned here that with 43 club trophies to his name most of which he actually won with Barcelona, Dani Alves is the most decorated footballer in the world, in fact, to this date. He also holds the record of most UEFA Super Cup titles with 4 titles 3 of which he won with Barcelona and one with Sevilla. He shares this record with Paolo Maldini of Italy who has also won the same number of UEFA Super Cups.

Neymar (111 Caps)

And here comes one of the

greatest Brazilian footballers of all time

, as some believe: Neymar or Neymar Jr. who’s been serving the top Ligue 1 club, PSG, since 2017 and has scored 87 goals in his 116 appearances for them which translates to 1.5 goals in every two appearances. Quite a prolific goalscorer if you ask us, as he really is, though his goalscoring record with the Brazilian national team is not as good as that: 68 goals in 111 appearances which means he has scored a little bit more than one goal (exactly 1.2) in every two appearances that he has made for his country’s national team, however, no other footballer on our list of most capped Brazilian footballers ever has scored that many goals for Brazil as Neymar.

has also made 10 appearances for Brazil U17 and U20 teams scoring the same number of goals (10) for them and 14 appearances for Brazil Olympic team with 8 goals for them. From among all the 111 appearances Neymar has made for Brazil senior national team, 66 (59.4%) have been at international friendlies, 28 (25.2%) at World Cup (both qualification round and World Cup group stage and play-offs), 12 at Copa America, and 5 at Confederations Cup. He has also provided 48 assists and has received 24 yellow cards and one direct red card in his international appearances - almost one yellow card in every 5 appearances.

Neymar has taken part in two editions of FIFA World Cup, namely the 2014 and 2018 editions, with the Brazilian national team and since he’s just 29 years old by now, he will surely make more appearances for his country’s national team and improve his cap record which we will surely update you with. He’s just too close to Dani Alves and Roberto Carols concerning the caps he has already earned - he’s only 7 and 14 caps behind the footballers mentioned above, respectively. And who knows? Maybe he will even overtake Cafu in the future and become the most capped Brazilian footballer ever.

Lucio (105 Caps)

A lesser-known name in the Brazilian football, Lucio is a 43-year-old Brazilian footballer who played as a center back and for some top European clubs like Inter Milan, Juventus, and

during his career. He actually made 105 appearances for the Brazilian national team between 2000 and 2011 taking part in three editions of FIFA World Cup, namely the 2002, 2006, and 2010 editions, and winning the first one (2002 World Cup) with them. He also captained the Brazilian national team in 2010 FIFA World Cup.

From among all the 105 appearances Lucio made for

Brazil national football team

36 (34.2%) were at International friendlies, 48 (45.7%) - the best percentage among the footballers already introduced in this post, 4 were at Copa America, and 17 at Confederations Cup. It should also be mentioned here that from Lucio’s 48 World Cup appearances 31 were at qualifying rounds and 17 at group stages and play-offs. Lucio never scored a goal for Brazil in World Cup competitions but 3 in international friendlies and one in Confederations Cup. He also received 13 yellow cards and one red card from a second yellow card during his service to the Brazilian national team.

Claudio Taffarel (101 Caps)

The only goalkeeper on the list of most capped Brazilian footballers ever, Claudio Taffarel is a 55-year-old retired footballer who currently works as the goalkeepers coach at the Brazilian national team and the Turkish club, Galatasaray. Taffarel never played for a major European club during his footballing time - his best shot at this was the Italian club,

, but he served the Brazilian national team from 1988 to 1998 making 101 appearances for them during the process and becoming the only Brazilian goalkeeper ever to have made more than 100 appearances for his country’s national team.

From among all the 101 appearances Taffarel made for the Brazilian national team, 41 (40.6%) were at international friendlies, 25 (24.7%) were at Copa America, 30 (30.6%) were at World Cup with 12 of these appearances taken place in World Cup qualifying rounds and 18 of them in World Cup group stage and play-offs, and finally 5 (4.9%) at 1998 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Taffarel conceded 69 goals and earned 53 clean sheets during his international career which translates to 0.6 goal conceded and 0.52 clean sheet earned per match. In other words, Taffarel conceded 3 goals in every 5 and earned a little bit more than one clean sheet (exactly 1.04) in every 2 appearances during his international career. He took part in three editions of FIFA World Cup, namely the 1990, 1994, and 1998 editions of the competition, with the Brazilian national team and won the second one (1994 World Cup) with them. It should also be mentioned here that the 55-year-old retired Brazilian goalkeeper never received a yellow or a red card during his international career.

Robinho (100 Caps)

The only footballer on the list of the

most capped Brazilian footballers ever

with exactly 100 caps, Robson de Souza, simply known as Robinho in the world of football, is a 37-year-old recently retired footballer who played for top European clubs,

, Real Madrid, and Manchester City some time during his career. He also made 100 appearances for the Brazilian national team, as mentioned above, between 2003 and 2017 and scored 28 goals for them which translates to a little bit more than one goal (exactly 1.12) in every 4 appearances that he made for his country’s national team.

From among all the 100 appearances Robinho made for the Brazilian national team 43 were at international friendlies, 11 at Copa America, 10 at Confederations Cup, 5 at 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup, and 31 at World Cup with 23 of them taken place in World Cup qualifying rounds and 8 in the same competition group stage and play-offs. Other than the 28 goals Robinho scored for Brazil in all his international appearances, he also provided 21 assists and received 9 yellow cards but no red cards.

With the Brazilian national team, Robinho actually took part in 2 editions of FIFA World Cup, namely the 2006 and 2010 editions, in one of which - actually the 2010 edition - he was part of the Brazil’s first team - in 2006 World Cup he was a reserved player. It should also be mentioned here that Robinho made 8 appearances and scored 3 goals for

some time in 2004.

Thiago Silva (98 Caps)

Another footballer on the list of most capped Brazilian footballers ever who is still in the business,

has made a total of 98 appearances for the Brazilian national team during his international career and since he’s not yet retired he could possibly increase his caps and at least overtake Robinho and Claudio Taffarel, who are just in front of him by a cap or two, on the list of Brazil's most capped players.

Silva is currently serving the top Premier League club, Chelsea, and has also served AC Milan and PSG sometime during his career; the latter for 8 years and actually more than any other club during his career. In international arenas, as mentioned above, Silva has made a total of 98 appearances for Brazil from which 53 (54%) were at international friendlies, 18 (18.3%) at Copa America, 22 (22.4%) were at World Cup with 11 of them taken place in World Cup qualification rounds and 11 in World Cup group stage and play-offs, and finally 5 (5.1%) at Confederations Cup. Silva has also made a total of 3 assists and received 12 yellow cards during his international career.

Silva has also scored 7 goals in all his 98 appearances for the Brazilian national team since 2008 which is not bad for a defender. He also served Brazil Olympic team sometime between 2008 and 2012 and made a total of 8 appearances but never scored a goal for them during this time. The 36-year-old Brazilian defender has taken part in three editions of FIFA World Cup, namely the 2010, 2014, and 2018 editions of the competition, with the Brazilian national team and captained them in the 2014 edition, though he never won a World Cup with them.

Silva is almost near his retirement and it is less probable that he will take part in 2022 World Cup, but there is still time for him to increase his caps and improve his position on the list of Brazilian most capped players.

Djalma Santos (98 Caps)

The only passed footballer on the list of

most capped Brazilian footballers ever

who, naturally, belongs to an older generation of football, Djalma Santos was one of the best right backs of his own time and as believed by many, of all time. He’s one of the few footballers in the history of football to have made more than 1000 club appearances, and alongside

and Franz Beckenbauer of Germany, he’s the only footballer to have been named on three FIFA World Cup All Star teams, namely the All Star teams of 1954, 1958, and 1962 editions of FIFA World Cup.

The interesting fact about Santos is that in all his 1000 club appearances he never received a direct red card or a second yellow card leading to a red card. And as far as we know, in his international career, he also never received a yellow card; such a gentleman! Santos served the Brazilian national team from 1952 to 1968 taking part in 4 editions of FIFA World Cup, namely the 1954, 1958, 1962, and 1966 editions of the competition, and actually won the 1958 and 1962 editions with them. He also managed to score 1 goal for the Brazilian national team in all the World Cup competitions he took part.

From among all the 98 appearances Santos made for his country’s national team 58 (59.1%) were at international friendlies - he also managed to score 2 goals for Brazil in these friendlies, 22 (22.4%) at Copa America, and 18 at FIFA World Cup with 6 of them taken place in World Cup qualifying rounds and 12 in group stage and play-offs.

Ronaldo (98 Caps)

Brazil’s third top scorer of all time after Neymar and the Brazilian legend, Pele, who really deserves to be among the

top 10 Brazilian players of all time

, too, Ronaldo is a 44-year-old retired footballer who served some top European clubs like Barcelona, Real Madrid, and

during his career. Ronaldo was a forward and a prolific goalscorer who managed to score a total of 352 goals in all his 518 club appearances which translates to 0.68 goals per appearance or actually 1.3 goals in every two appearances.

Ronaldo also proved a prolific goalscorer at international level and the sole fact that he’s Brazil’s third top scorer of all time with 62 goals in 98 appearances is a proof to that - this time he also gets a goal-to-appearance ratio of 0.6. But what about his international appearances? Well, just like the other Brazilian footballers already mentioned in this post, most of Ronaldo’s international appearances took place at international friendlies Brazil had: Actually 46 or 46.9% of all his 98 international appearances in which he scored 23 goals, too.

Ronaldo also made 34 appearances for the Brazilian national team in World Cup competitions - actually in 1994, 1998, 2002, and 2006 editions of World Cup - with 15 of these appearances being made in World Cup qualifying rounds and 19 in World Cup group stage and play-offs. He scored a total of 25 goals in all World Cup rounds and stages which, considering his 34 World Cup appearances, gets him a World Cup goal-to-appearance ratio of 0.73 meaning that the top former Brazilian forward scored almost 1.5 goals in every two appearances he made in World Cup.

It should also be mentioned here that from the 25 goals Ronaldo scored in World Cup competitions, 15 were scored in group stage and play-offs and 10 in World Cup qualifying rounds. And the rest of Ronaldo’s international appearances? Well, 13 of which took place in Copa America and 5 in Confederations Cup where in the former Ronaldo scored 10 and in the latter 4 goals. Ronaldo also provided 14 assists and received 9 yellow cards during his international career.

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