A veritable footballing hotbed, South America has given the game some of its very best players.
FourFourTwo's countdown of the best South American footballers ever takes in all positions, from eccentric goalkeepers to simply sensational forwards.
Let's dive straight in, shall we?
32. Jose Luis Chilavert (Paraguay)
We all love a goalscoring goalkeeper, and iconic ex-Paraguay captain Jose Luis Chilavert found the net 59 times throughout his career – mostly through free-kicks and penalties.
And, particularly during the 90s, Chilavert was one of the world’s best at his ‘day job’ – keeping the ball out of the net at the other end – winning the 1994 Copa Libertadores with Argentine side Velez Sarsfield.
31. Carlos Valderrama (Colombia)
One of the game’s most recognisable figures of the 90s, Carlos Valderrama and his peroxide-blond mop dazzled at the 1990, 1994 and 1998 World Cups with Colombia.
An extremely graceful playmaker, Valderrama racked up 11 caps for his country and was voted MVP in the inaugural season of MLS in 1996 – where he turned out for the Tampa Bay Mutiny, Miami Fusion and Colorado Rapids.
30. Alisson (Brazil)
A Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup, League Cup and Club World Cup winner with Liverpool, Alisson will be remembered as one of the very best goalkeepers of his generation.
Brazil’s number one at the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, Alisson – blessed with elite shot-stopping and ball-playing abilities – was recognised as the best in his position in 2019 by numerous outlets.
29. Cafu (Brazil)
Skipper of Brazil’s 2002 World Cup-winning team, Cafu is undoubtedly one of the greatest full-backs of all time, bringing immense energy and tenacity to the right flank for club and country alike.
Capped 142 times by his nation – with whom he also lifted the 1994 World Cup, reached the 1998 final and won two Copas America – Cafu won Serie A titles with Roma and AC Milan, and the Champions League with the latter.
28. Roberto Carlos (Brazil)
One of the game’s best ever left-backs, Roberto Carlos was simply sensational at what he did, featuring most prominently for Real Madrid and Brazil.
A mainstay of his country’s 2002 World Cup-winning team, the double Copa America champion and triple Champions League winner scored some of the most spectacular goals of all time – most notably that free-kick against France in 1997.
27. Omar Sivori (Argentina)
A prolific goalscorer for Juventus, Argentina and [checks notes] Italy (switching international allegiances was a doddle back then compared to now), Omar Sivori scooped the 1961 Ballon d’Or, having fired Juve to a second straight Serie A title.
The stupendously gifted forward – who earned 19 caps for Argentina but actually only represented Italy at the World Cup, in 1962 – won three Scudetti with the Bianconeri in all, finishing as top scorer in the Italian top flight in 1959/60.
26. Djalma Santos (Brazil)
Another Brazilian who’s regarded as an all-time great in the full-back position, Djalma Santos was part of the team which lifted the 1958 World Cup and retained it four years later.
Included in Pele’s 2004 ‘FIFA 100’ list of the world’s greatest living footballers at the time, the right-back made well over 400 appearances for two different clubs: Palmeiras and Portuguesa.
25. Gabriel Batistuta (Argentina)
Among the deadliest marksmen of the 90s, Gabriel Batistuta banged in the goals for fun for Argentina and Fiorentina alike, netting 56 times for the former and 203 for the latter overall.
Aptly nicknamed ‘Batigol’, he won the 1995/96 Coppa Italia with Fiorentina and the 2000/01 Serie A title with Roma – having earlier lifted the 1991 and 1993 Copas America with his country.
24. Mario Kempes (Argentina)
The hero of Argentina’s 1978 World Cup victory on home soil, Mario Kempes’ brace helped defeat the Netherlands in the final – and ensured he finished as the tournament’s top scorer with six goals.
As if that wasn’t impressive enough, Kempes – who found the net 149 times across two spells with Valencia, winning the 1979/80 Cup Winners’ Cup – also received the Golden Ball as player of the tournament.
23. Sergio Aguero
The Premier League's all-time leading overseas scorer with 184 goals for Manchester City, Sergio Aguero will be remembered as one of the most lethal strikers of the modern era.
Scorer of that goal to seal the 2011/12 title for City, Aguero also found the net 41 times in 101 caps for Argentina – with whom he won 2008 Olympic gold and the 2021 Copa America.
22. Rivellino (Brazil)
A fine player with an equally fine moustache, Rivellino was one of the main men in Brazil’s triumphant 1970 World Cup team, scoring three goals at the finals in Mexico – including an emphatic free-kick against Czechoslovakia in the group stage.
Capped 92 times, Rivellino – who played for Corinthians, Fluminense and Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal at club level – scored 26 international goals in total.
21. Jose Andrade (Uruguay)
One of the 1930 World Cup’s standout performers, Jose Andrade’s immense performances at wing-half (more or less what we know today as a defensive midfielder) were absolutely integral to hosts Uruguay winning the inaugural tournament.
Previously a 1924 and 1928 Olympic gold medallist, Andrade (pictured above back row, third from right) won domestic titles with Uruguay’s two biggest clubs: Penarol and Nacional.
20. Kaka (Brazil)
For a brief time at least, Kaka was just about the best player on the planet, doing the 2007 double of Ballon d’Or and FIFA World Player of the Year.
A Serie A and La Liga champion with AC Milan and Real Madrid respectively – and a Champions League winner with the latter – the addictively watchable attacking midfielder notched 29 goals in 92 caps for Brazil, winning the 2002 World Cup at the very beginning of his international career.
19. Luis Suarez (Uruguay)
Luis Suarez has scored goals – among them many great goals – everywhere he’s been, finishing as top scorer in the Eredivisie, La Liga and the Premier League – for a while holding the Prem record for the most goals in a 38-game campaign (31 for Liverpool in 2013/14).
At Barcelona, Uruguay’s all-time leading marksman formed the irresistible ‘MSN’ attacking trio with fellow South Americans Lionel Messi and Neymar, winning four La Liga titles and a Champions League with the Catalan giants.
18. Teofilo Cubillas (Peru)
Peru’s greatest player of all time, Teofilo Cubillas produced a string of fine performances at the 1970 and 1978 World Cups – helping his nation to the quarter-finals of both tournaments, scoring five goals at each, and to victory at the 1975 Copa America in between.
A marvellously technical attacking midfielder with devastating set-piece ability, Cubillas – who also appeared at the 1982 World Cup – notched 65 goals in 108 games for Porto, helping them to the 1976/77 Portuguese Cup.
17. Daniel Passarella (Argentina)
Up there with the best centre-backs ever to take to the pitch, Daniel Passarella captained Argentina to glory at their home World Cup of 1978 – and was an unused squad member as the Albiceleste triumphed again eight years later.
Regarded as one of the hardest players in football history, on top of his world-class defensive abilities, Passarella was also a frequent goalscorer – the highest-scoring defender of all time at one point, in fact – registering the best part of 200 times for club and country.
16. Jairzinho (Brazil)
Skilful, robust, and sporting a fantastic afro, Jairzinho was a mainstay of the Brazilian national team for well over a decade, featuring at three World Cups – and playing a starring role as his country won the tournament in 1970.
It was at those finals that the iconic right-winger dubbed ‘O Furacao’ (‘The Hurricane’) scored one of the all-time great World Cup goals, after embarking on a jaw-dropping dribble against Czechoslovakia in the group stage.
15. Juan Alberto Schiaffino (Uruguay)
Uruguay’s best player of all time, Juan Alberto Schiaffino only won 21 caps for his country – but his impact couldn’t have been much bigger: he scored three goals at the 1950 World Cup, including the equaliser as Uruguay fought back to stun hosts Brazil in the tournament-deciding match at the Maracana.
Like many other South Americans of his era, the gangly inside forward didn’t just play for his homeland; he also represented Italy, where he won three Serie A titles with AC Milan.
14. Romario (Brazil)
Very few footballers can say they amassed 700+ career goals – but Romario is one of them, having got on the scoresheet 755 times for club and country over the course of his 22-year career.
Golden Ball recipient as player of the tournament during Brazil’s World Cup victory, the truly prolific ‘Baixinho’ (‘Shorty’) smashed in 128 goals in 149 games for PSV, 39 in 65 for Barcelona, and 55 in 70 for Brazil.
13. Neymar (Brazil)
Brazil’s all-time leading goalscorer, Neymar will go down as the nation’s greatest player of the 2010s – a decade during which he got his hands on trophy after trophy with Santos, Barcelona and PSG, most notably the 2014/14 Champions League with Barca.
One prong of the ‘MSN’ frontline with Lionel Messi and Luiz Suarez in Catalonia, Neymar emphasised his creative prowess by finishing as leading Champions League assist provider in 2015/16 and 2016/17.
And he achieved all this despite seemingly being cursed by bad injury luck.
12. Didi (Brazil)
Capped 34 times by Argentina – winning the 1941 and 1947 South American Championship, the forerunner to the Copa America – Jose Manuel Moreno is revered as the very best players ever produced by his nation.
A free-scoring forward, the moustachioed River Plate icon won multiple league titles with the iconic Buenos Aires club, and also enjoyed such successes in Mexico, Chile and Colombia.
11. Socrates (Brazil)
A great footballer and (obviously) a great philosopher, Socrates has to go down as one of the finest players never to get his hands on a World Cup winner’s medal.
The standout member of Brazil’s team at the 1982 World Cup – where he wore the captain’s armband – the famously hairband-wearing ‘Doctor’ was named 1983 South American Footballer of the Year.
While mostly playing in his homeland, Socrates had spells in Europe with Fiorentina and, er, Garforth Town.
10. Rivaldo (Brazil)
One prong of the sensational attacking trio which spearheaded Brazil’s 2002 World Cup win (alongside Ronaldinho and Ronaldo), Rivaldo was undoubtedly one of the top attacking midfielders of the late 90s and early 00s.
Ballon d’Or winner in 1999, he scored 35 goals in 74 international appearances, as well as 130 in 235 games for Barcelona – where he won two La Liga titles before joining AC Milan and lifting the Champions League.
9. Zico (Brazil)
Perhaps the greatest Brazilian player never to get his hands on the World Cup – the closest he came was a third-placed finish in 1978 – Zico was often referred to as ‘the White Pele’. That’s how good a playmaker he was.
An impeccable passer and a ruthless finisher, Zico – who won the 1981 Copa Libertadores with Flamengo – found the net 48 times in 71 caps. Deadly from dead-ball situations, he is said to have scored 101 career free-kicks.
8. Carlos Alberto (Brazil)
Simply one of the finest full-backs in the history of the game, Carlos Alberto memorably captained Brazil to glory at the 1970 World Cup.
The right-back’s goal in the final – Brazil’s fourth in a 4-1 thrashing of Italy – rounding off a stunning team move, is often cited as one of the greatest ever scored.
Carlos Alberto has been inducted into the Brazilian Football Museum Hall of Fame and, for his NASL title-winning exploits with the New York Cosmos, America’s National Soccer Hall of Fame.
7. Garrincha (Brazil)
Yet another superstar member of Brazil’s World Cup-retaining team of 1958 and 1962, Garrincha is widely considered to be one of the very best dribblers football has ever seen.
“In the entire history of football, no one made more people,” legendary Uruguayan writer Eduardo Galeano said of Garrincha – who, in 1962, became the first player to do the prestigious double of World Cup Golden Boot and Golden Ball.
6. Ronaldinho (Brazil)
Arguably the world’s best player of the 00s, Ronaldinho was almost certainly the most entertaining of that particular decade.
One of those players who you could just tell lived for football, ‘O Bruxo’ (‘The Wizard’) attempted things most wouldn’t dare – and he usually pulled them off, such as his famous toe-poke goal for Barcelona against Chelsea.
Capped 97 times – scoring 33 goals – the 2005 Ballon d’Or winner helped Brazil to victory at the 1999 Copa America then played a pivotal part in their 2002 World Cup success.
5. Ronaldo (Brazil)
Ronaldo – ‘O Fenomeno’ – redefined what it meant to be a centre-forward with his scarily prolific goalscoring exploits for club and country during the 90s.
After plundering 54 goals in 57 games for PSV and 47 in 49 for Barcelona, Ronaldo won his first of two Ballons d’Or Copas America and in 1997.
An unused squad member at the 1994 World Cup, he couldn’t quite help Brazil to 1998 glory after suffering a seizure before the final – but he more than made up for that by stealing the show four years later, finishing as top scorer.
4. Alfredo Di Stefano (Argentina)
While he was unfortunate enough to be probably the best player never to play at the World Cup, Alfredo Di Stefano’s status as one of the game’s finest and most legendary players is utterly indisputable.
Once called the greatest of all time by Pele, Di Stefano was a complete forward with historically good dribbling ability who spearheaded Real Madrid’s attack as they lifted the first five European Cups between 1956 and 1960.
The man known as ‘Saeta Rubia’ (‘Blond Arrow’) – who earned six caps for Argentina but 31 for Spain – scored in all five finals, collecting the Ballon d’Or in 1957 and 1959.
3. Diego Maradona (Argentina)
Worshipped in Argentina and throughout football (unless you’re an England fan of a certain generation…), Diego Maradona remains a prominent name in the conversation over who is the greatest player of all time.
A pocket-sized genius of a footballer at five-foot-five, his goal against England en route to captaining Argentina to 1986 World Cup victory is surely still the best ever scored.
“We all thought ourselves privileged to be witnesses of his genius,” said Lobo Carrasco, a teammate of Maradona’s at Barcelona – one of three clubs where he won silverware, the others being Boca Juniors and, most famously, Napoli.
2. Pele (Brazil)
We’ve got Pele as the second-best South American footballer ever – and the second-best from anywhere in the world, for that matter – but you would not be wrong to rank him as number one.
The game’s first global superstar, what more is there to say about ‘O Rei’ (‘The King’) that hasn’t already been said countless times over?
A player of almost indescribably magical prowess, Pele won three World Cups – a feat nearly certain never to be repeated – also picking up the Golden Ball in 1970, and amassed the best part of 800 career goals.
1. Lionel Messi (Argentina)
We could have just put a picture of a goat here and you would have got the message – and it’s become increasingly impossible to disagree as time has gone on and record after record has fallen.
Words cannot do Lionel Messi justice; thankfully, his career has taken place in an era of wall-to-wall coverage of the beautiful game, so there’s no shortage of footage to watch – in stunned silence as you try (and fail) to work out how he did [insert magic Messi moment of choice here].
Inspirational skipper of Argentina’s 2022 World Cup-winning team, the multiple Ballon d’Or recipient is also Barcelona’s best ever player, having chalked up a club-record 672 goals en route to 24 major trophies – including four Champions Leagues.
