Players analysis, in distribution.

What month were most goalkeepers born? Do attackers cluster differently from defenders? Where do the GOATs (Pelé, Maradona, Cruyff, Messi, CR7, R9…) fall on the curve — on the modal month or as outliers?

Tournament window — click to toggle
1,121
Players in window
53
Teams
21.2
Avg squad size
3
Tournaments
1930, 1958, 1986

Squads by position

Players in the selected window, split by role
GET /aggregates/players?years=1930,1958,1986

By confederation

Where the players come from
GET /aggregates/players?years=1930,1958,1986

Hemisphere split

Northern vs Southern hemisphere national teams
Northern823 (73.4%)
Southern298 (26.6%)
ApiTeam.country × hemisphere classification

Birth month, by position

One chart per role. GOAT pin-marks (gold dots above the bars) call out where iconic players sit. Look for the “relative-age effect” — many youth-academy systems privilege Q1 birthdays (Jan-Mar) for early physical development, and you sometimes see the same skew in elite squads.

Goalkeepers

Birth-month distribution + 1 GOAT marker
GK
Lev Yashin· Oct
Modal month: Sep15 players (10.9%). Range: 715.

Defenders

Birth-month distribution + 2 GOAT markers
DF
Franz Beckenbauer· Sep
Fabio Cannavaro· Sep
Modal month: Mar33 players (10.7%). Range: 1633.

Midfielders

Birth-month distribution + 10 GOAT markers
MF
Bobby Charlton· Oct
Diego Maradona· Oct
Michel Platini· Jun
Zico· Mar
Zinedine Zidane· Jun
Ronaldinho· Mar
Kaká· Apr
Andrés Iniesta· May
Xavi Hernández· Jan
Luka Modrić· Sep
Modal month: Jan39 players (12.7%). Range: 1839.

Attackers

Birth-month distribution + 17 GOAT markers
FW
Pelé· Oct
Garrincha· Oct
Eusébio· Jan
Gerd Müller· Nov
Johan Cruyff· Apr
Karl-Heinz Rummenigge· Sep
Paolo Rossi· Sep
Romário· Jan
Ronaldo (R9)· Sep
Cristiano Ronaldo· Feb
Lionel Messi· Jun
Kylian Mbappé· Dec
Neymar· Feb
Robert Lewandowski· Aug
Mohamed Salah· Jun
Karim Benzema· Dec
Vinícius Jr· Jul
Modal month: Apr39 players (11.1%). Range: 2339.

All players

Every player from the 1930, 1958, 1986 squads. Search by name or filter by country, position, birth year or birth month. The C badge marks captains.

1,121 / 1,121
PlayerCountryPositionDOBBirth monthWCsGoals
Just FontaineFranceAttacker1933-08-18Aug113
Guillermo StábileArgentinaAttacker1905-01-17Jan18
Gary LinekerEnglandAttacker1960-11-30Nov16
Helmut RahnWest GermanyAttacker1929-08-16Aug16
PeléBrazilAttacker1940-10-23Oct16
CarecaBrazilAttacker1960-10-05Oct15
Diego MaradonaCArgentinaMidfielder1960-10-30Oct15
Emilio ButragueñoSpainAttacker1963-07-22Jul15
Pedro CeaUruguayAttacker1900-09-01Sep15
Peter McParlandNorthern IrelandAttacker1934-04-25Apr15
VaváBrazilAttacker1934-11-12Nov15
Agne SimonssonSwedenAttacker1935-10-19Oct14
Alessandro AltobelliItalyAttacker1955-11-28Nov14
Bert PatenaudeUnited StatesAttacker1909-11-04Nov14
Ihor BelanovSoviet UnionMidfielder1960-09-25Sep14
Jorge ValdanoArgentinaAttacker1955-10-04Oct14
Kurt HamrinSwedenMidfielder1934-11-19Nov14
Lajos TichyHungaryAttacker1935-03-21Mar14
Preben ElkjærDenmarkAttacker1957-09-11Sep14
Zdeněk ZikánCzechoslovakiaAttacker1937-11-10Nov14
Carlos PeucelleArgentinaAttacker1908-09-13Sep13
Hans SchäferCWest GermanyAttacker1927-10-19Oct13
Ivan BekYugoslaviaAttacker1909-10-29Oct13
Jan CeulemansCBelgiumMidfielder1957-02-28Feb13
Jesper OlsenDenmarkMidfielder1961-03-20Mar13
Nico ClaesenBelgiumAttacker1962-10-07Oct13
Oreste CorbattaArgentinaAttacker1936-03-11Mar13
Peregrino AnselmoUruguayAttacker1902-04-30Apr13
PreguinhoCBrazilAttacker1905-02-08Feb13
Raymond KopaFranceMidfielder1931-10-13Oct13
Roger PiantoniFranceAttacker1931-12-26Dec13
Rudi VöllerWest GermanyAttacker1960-04-13Apr13
Todor VeselinovićYugoslaviaAttacker1930-10-22Oct13
Abderrazak KhairiMoroccoAttacker1962-11-20Nov12
Adolfo ZumelzúArgentinaMidfielder1902-01-05Jan12
Aleksandar PetakovićYugoslaviaAttacker1930-02-06Feb12
Anatoli IlyinSoviet UnionAttacker1931-06-27Jun12
André MaschinotFranceAttacker1903-06-28Jun12
Bart McGheeUnited StatesAttacker1899-04-30Apr12
Carlos VidalChileAttacker1902-02-22Feb12
Derek KevanEnglandAttacker1935-03-06Mar12
Đorđe VujadinovićYugoslaviaAttacker1909-11-29Nov12
Enzo ScifoBelgiumMidfielder1966-02-19Feb12
Fernando QuirarteMexicoDefender1956-05-17May12
Florencio AmarillaParaguayAttacker1935-01-03Jan12
Héctor CastroUruguayAttacker1904-11-29Nov12
Ivor AllchurchWalesAttacker1929-10-16Oct12
Jean-Pierre PapinFranceAttacker1963-11-05Nov12
Jorge BurruchagaArgentinaMidfielder1962-10-09Oct12
Jorge Lino RomeroParaguayAttacker1937-09-23Sep12
José AltafiniBrazilAttacker1938-07-24Jul12
José ParodiParaguayAttacker1932-08-30Aug12
JosimarBrazilDefender1961-09-19Sep12
Juan Bautista AgüeroCParaguayAttacker1935-06-24Jun12
Julio César RomeroParaguayMidfielder1960-08-28Aug12
Klaus AllofsWest GermanyAttacker1956-12-05Dec12
Luis MontiArgentinaMidfielder1901-05-15May12
Manuel RosasMexicoDefender1908-02-29Feb12
Maryan WisnieskiFranceAttacker1937-02-01Feb12
Michel PlatiniCFranceMidfielder1955-06-21Jun12
Milan DvořákCzechoslovakiaAttacker1934-11-19Nov12
ModeratoBrazilAttacker1902-07-14Jul12
Nils LiedholmCSwedenMidfielder1922-10-08Oct12
Pablo DoradoUruguayAttacker1908-06-22Jun12
Ramón CalderéSpainMidfielder1959-01-16Jan12
Roberto CabañasParaguayAttacker1961-04-11Apr12
Santos IriarteUruguayAttacker1902-11-02Nov12
SócratesBrazilMidfielder1954-02-19Feb12
Uwe SeelerWest GermanyAttacker1936-11-05Nov12
Václav HovorkaCzechoslovakiaAttacker1931-09-19Sep12
Yannick StopyraFranceAttacker1961-01-09Jan12
Abdelkrim Merry "Krimau"MoroccoAttacker1955-01-13Jan11
Adalbert DeșuRomaniaAttacker1909-03-24Mar11
Ahmed RadhiIraqAttacker1964-03-21Mar11
Alejandro ScopelliArgentinaAttacker1908-05-12May11
Aleksandar TirnanićYugoslaviaAttacker1910-07-15Jul11
Aleksandr IvanovSoviet UnionAttacker1928-04-14Apr11
Alfred KörnerAustriaAttacker1926-02-14Feb11
Andoni GoikoetxeaSpainDefender1956-08-23Aug11
Andreas BrehmeWest GermanyDefender1960-11-09Nov11
Antonio AlzamendiUruguayAttacker1956-06-07Jun11
Bernard GenghiniFranceMidfielder1958-01-18Jan11
Blagoje MarjanovićYugoslaviaAttacker1907-09-09Sep11
Bobby CollinsScotlandAttacker1931-02-16Feb11
Carlos ManuelPortugalMidfielder1958-01-15Jan11
Cayetano RéParaguayAttacker1938-02-07Feb11
Cho Kwang-raeSouth KoreaMidfielder1954-03-19Mar11
Choi Soon-hoSouth KoreaAttacker1962-01-10Jan11
Colin ClarkeNorthern IrelandAttacker1962-10-30Oct11
Constantin StanciuRomaniaAttacker1907-09-24Sep11
Daniel VeytBelgiumAttacker1956-12-09Dec11
Delfín Benítez CáceresParaguayAttacker1910-09-24Sep11
DiamantinoPortugalMidfielder1959-08-03Aug11
DidiBrazilMidfielder1928-10-08Oct11
Djamel ZidaneAlgeriaAttacker1955-04-28Apr11
Dominique RocheteauFranceAttacker1955-01-14Jan11
EdinhoCBrazilDefender1955-06-05Jun11
EloySpainAttacker1964-07-10Jul11
Enzo FrancescoliUruguayAttacker1961-11-12Nov11
Erwin VandenberghBelgiumAttacker1959-01-26Jan11

GOAT reference

Curated. Inclusion in this list isn't a championship ranking — it's a span of Ballon-d'Or winners + nominees + commonly-cited GOATs across eras, used for the overlay above.

30 / 30
PlayerCountryPositionDOBBirth monthWCsGoals
PeléBrazilAttacker1940-10-23Oct0
GarrinchaBrazilAttacker1933-10-28Oct0
EusébioPortugalAttacker1942-01-25Jan0
Bobby CharltonEnglandMidfielder1937-10-11Oct0
Lev YashinSoviet UnionGoalkeeper1929-10-22Oct0
Gerd MüllerWest GermanyAttacker1945-11-03Nov0
Johan CruyffNetherlandsAttacker1947-04-25Apr0
Franz BeckenbauerWest GermanyDefender1945-09-11Sep0
Diego MaradonaArgentinaMidfielder1960-10-30Oct0
Michel PlatiniFranceMidfielder1955-06-21Jun0
ZicoBrazilMidfielder1953-03-03Mar0
Karl-Heinz RummeniggeWest GermanyAttacker1955-09-25Sep0
Paolo RossiItalyAttacker1956-09-23Sep0
RomárioBrazilAttacker1966-01-29Jan0
Ronaldo (R9)BrazilAttacker1976-09-22Sep0
Zinedine ZidaneFranceMidfielder1972-06-23Jun0
RonaldinhoBrazilMidfielder1980-03-21Mar0
KakáBrazilMidfielder1982-04-22Apr0
Fabio CannavaroItalyDefender1973-09-13Sep0
Andrés IniestaSpainMidfielder1984-05-11May0
Xavi HernándezSpainMidfielder1980-01-25Jan0
Cristiano RonaldoPortugalAttacker1985-02-05Feb0
Lionel MessiArgentinaAttacker1987-06-24Jun0
Luka ModrićCroatiaMidfielder1985-09-09Sep0
Kylian MbappéFranceAttacker1998-12-20Dec0
NeymarBrazilAttacker1992-02-05Feb0
Robert LewandowskiPolandAttacker1988-08-21Aug0
Mohamed SalahEgyptAttacker1992-06-15Jun0
Karim BenzemaFranceAttacker1987-12-19Dec0
Vinícius JrBrazilAttacker2000-07-12Jul0

Hat-tricks (3+ goals in a match)

Every individual 3+ goal performance in World Cup history. Oleg Salenko's 5-goal haul in 1994 v Cameroon is the all-time single-match record.

#PlayerTeamOpponentStageYearGoals
1Oleg SalenkoRussiaCameroonGroup19945
2Ernst WilimowskiPolandBrazilRound of 1619384
3AdemirBrazilSwedenFinal round19504
4Sándor KocsisHungaryWest GermanyGroup19544
5EusébioPortugalNorth KoreaQuarter-final19664
6Emilio ButragueñoSpainDenmarkRound of 1619864
7Bert PatenaudeUnited StatesParaguayGroup19303
8Pedro CeaUruguayYugoslaviaSemi-final19303
9Guillermo StábileArgentinaMexicoGroup19303
10Edmund ConenGermanyBelgiumRound of 1619343
11Angelo SchiavioItalyUnited StatesRound of 1619343
12Oldřich NejedlýCzechoslovakiaGermanySemi-final19343
13LeônidasBrazilPolandRound of 1619383
14Gyula ZsengellérHungaryDutch East IndiesRound of 1619383
15Harry AnderssonSwedenCubaQuarter-final19383
16Gustav WetterströmSwedenCubaQuarter-final19383
17Oscar MíguezUruguayBoliviaGroup19503
18Estanislao BasoraSpainUruguayFinal round19503
19Sándor KocsisHungarySouth KoreaGroup19543
20Erich ProbstAustriaCzechoslovakiaGroup19543
21Carlos BorgesUruguayScotlandGroup19543
22Suat MamatTurkeySouth KoreaGroup19543
23Josef HügiSwitzerlandAustriaQuarter-final19543
24Just FontaineFranceParaguayGroup19583
25Just FontaineFranceWest GermanyThird place19583
26PeléBrazilFranceSemi-final19583
27Florian AlbertHungaryBulgariaGroup19623
28Geoff HurstEnglandWest GermanyFinal19663
29Franz BeckenbauerWest GermanySwitzerlandGroup19663
30Helmut HallerWest GermanySwitzerlandGroup19663
31EusébioPortugalBrazilGroup19663
32Gerd MüllerWest GermanyBulgariaGroup19703
33Gerd MüllerWest GermanyPeruQuarter-final19703
34Andrzej SzarmachPolandHaitiGroup19743
35Dušan BajevićYugoslaviaZaireGroup19743
36Robbie RensenbrinkNetherlandsIranGroup19783
37Teófilo CubillasPeruIranGroup19783
38Karl-Heinz RummeniggeWest GermanyChileGroup19823
39Zbigniew BoniekPolandBelgiumSecond round19823
40László KissHungaryEl SalvadorGroup19823
41Paolo RossiItalyBrazilSecond round19823
42Gary LinekerEnglandPolandGroup19863
43Igor BelanovSoviet UnionBelgiumRound of 1619863
44Tomáš SkuhravýCzechoslovakiaCosta RicaRound of 1619903
45MíchelSpainSouth KoreaGroup19903
46Gabriel BatistutaArgentinaGreeceGroup19943
47Gabriel BatistutaArgentinaJamaicaGroup19983
48Miroslav KloseGermanySaudi ArabiaGroup20023
49PauletaPortugalPolandGroup20023
50Gonzalo HiguaínArgentinaSouth KoreaGroup20103
51Thomas MüllerGermanyPortugalGroup20143
52Xherdan ShaqiriSwitzerlandHondurasGroup20143
53Cristiano RonaldoPortugalSpainGroup20183
54Harry KaneEnglandPanamaGroup20183
55Gonçalo RamosPortugalSwitzerlandRound of 1620223
56Kylian MbappéFranceArgentinaFinal20223
56 hat-tricks · 6with 4+ goals · Salenko's 5 (1994) is the only 5-goal haul on record