The highest scoring teams in World Cup history

Source: Alamy Stock Photo

Want to know which nations have netted the most at the World Cup? We’ve ranked the ten best scoring teams, and explored where England and Scotland rank.

With World Cup fever well and truly taking over, there’s plenty to look forward to. From blockbuster match-ups to high-stakes affairs, there’s likely to be goals, goals, and more goals this summer. But who actually are the highest scoring teams in World Cup history?

Reading on, we’ve ranked the nations who’re best at bagging on the biggest stage; or, if you’re ready to back a big win this time around, discover the latest World Cup betting odds for all the matches as the tournament unfolds.

The top scoring teams in World Cup history

Here, we have the nations who’ve recorded the most goals in World Cup history, including their goal-to-game ration. Incredibly, all net at least once a game, with most bagging at least a few every other match. 

The top five scoring teams at the World Cup

Brazil 14/1 lead the pack with the most goals in World Cup history, having netted a whopping 237 times in 114 games – that’s more than two goals a game; something only matched by four-time winners Germany 14/1 .

Speaking of which, the Germans will certainly have their sights set on bettering Brazil this time around and usurping the South Americans to end the summer atop the list. Die Mannschaft are only five goals behind at present, having played a couple of games less, so a successful haul could take them to the top of the pile if Brazil struggle to perform.

Next up, we have Argentina 7/1 – one of the leading favourites to win the tournament in 2026. They’re the third of three teams to have scored 150+ goals at the World Cup, with a rich history of producing goalscoring talent, epitomised by the legendary Lionel Messi who’s currently at the helm and poised to play in his sixth World Cup.

Placing fourth, we have 2022 finalist France 4/1 , who have recorded 136 goals in just 73 games – at a rate of 1.86 goals per game. Notably, this is a stronger ratio than Argentina, who have played 15 more games across the tournament’s editions.

Meanwhile, though Italy have failed to qualify for a third successive World Cup, their historic goalscoring record does a lot of heavy lifting. With four titles to their name, the Azzurri’s count totals 128 in 83 games.

How do England and Scotland rank among the top scoring World Cup teams?

Unsurprisingly, England 13/2 have a stronger World Cup goalscoring record than their northern neighbours Scotland, with more than 100 netted in just 74 games. Despite a scoring rate of 1.41 goals per game, England have struggled to make their aptitude in front of goal count, only making it past the quarter finals once since 1990. That said, Thomas Tuchel will hope to pick up from where Gareth Southgate left off, and position the Three Lions in the mix at the business end of the competition.

As for Scotland 200/1 , they can’t boast as deep a history as England at the World Cup, having played a third of the games. However, impressively, they do have a positive goalscoring record: 25 scored at a rate of 1.09 per game. With Haiti and Morocco awaiting the Tartan Army, fans from Scotland can reasonably expect a decent output.