The Most Famous

SOCCER PLAYERS from Chile

This page contains a list of the greatest Chilean Soccer Players. The pantheon dataset contains 21,273 Soccer Players, 138 of which were born in Chile. This makes Chile the birth place of the 28th most number of Soccer Players behind Colombia, and Norway.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Chilean Soccer Players of all time. This list of famous Chilean Soccer Players is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Chilean Soccer Players.

1. Elías Figueroa (b. 1946)

With an HPI of 60.06, Elías Figueroa is the most famous Chilean Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 38 different languages on wikipedia.

Elías Ricardo Figueroa Brander (born 25 October 1946) is a Chilean former footballer who played for several clubs during his long career, notably his hometown club Santiago Wanderers, Brazilian club Internacional and Uruguayan club Peñarol. He also represented Chile 47 times, appearing in three FIFA World Cups, in 1966, 1974, and 1982. Regarded by many as one of the greatest defenders in the history of the game, Figueroa was noted for his elegant style of play, his composure in the centre of defense and his ability to cut out opposition attacks and immediately launch counterattacks from the back with his passing. He was also praised throughout his career for being a gentleman on and off the pitch. He was twice awarded the Bola de Ouro, the Brazilian Player of the year award whilst playing for Internacional in 1972 and 1976. He was also awarded the South American Footballer of the Year three times in a row by Venezuelan newspaper El Mundo in 1974, 1975 and 1976. He was named Best Player in Uruguay in 1967 and 1968, and Best Player in Chile in 1977 and 1978. After retiring, he was named one of the world's 125 best living football players by Pelé in 2004, and was also voted 8th best South American and 37th best player in the world of the 20th Century by the IFFHS in 1999.

2. Iván Zamorano (b. 1967)

With an HPI of 59.60, Iván Zamorano is the 2nd most famous Chilean Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 48 different languages.

Iván Luis Zamorano Zamora (Latin American Spanish: [iˈβan samoˈɾano]; born 18 January 1967) is a Chilean former professional footballer who played as a striker. He is regarded as one of Chile's most recognized footballers. He first appeared as a member of the Chile national team in 1987, appearing on the team every year until 2001. During his tenure, he played in the 1998 World Cup, four Copa América tournaments, and the Olympics in 2000 with the u-23 team, where he won a bronze medal and was the top scorer of the tournament. He played for several clubs, notably Spanish clubs Sevilla and Real Madrid; Italian club Inter Milan as well as Liga MX club América. He won the 1994–95 La Liga title and was the season's top scorer with Real Madrid. He also won the UEFA Cup with Inter Milan in 1998, as well as the Liga MX title with America his first season with the club. A powerful and prolific goal-scorer, he was particularly renowned for his strength and ability in the air, with many of his goals coming from headers. In 2004, Zamorano was selected among the FIFA 100, a list of the best living football players in the world compiled by Pelé. Zamorano was nicknamed Bam Bam and Iván el Terrible.

3. Leonel Sánchez (1936 - 2022)

With an HPI of 59.40, Leonel Sánchez is the 3rd most famous Chilean Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 37 different languages.

Leonel Guillermo Sánchez Lineros (25 April 1936 – 2 April 2022) was a Chilean professional footballer who played as a striker or on the left wing. He is recognized as one of the Best South American Footballers of the 20th Century and one of the great forwards in the history of the FIFA World Cup. He was the top goalscorer of the 1962 FIFA World Cup where Chile achieved a historic third-place finish. He was also part of the team of the tournament of the World Cup and was awarded the Golden Boot and the Bronze Ball from FIFA. He was also included in the top 100 players of the history of the World Cups by FIFA. At the continental level he was part of the team of the tournament of the 1956 South American Championship, where Chile was the runner-up. In addition, Conmebol included him among the best specialists of free kicks in the history of South America. Considered one of the best Chilean players in history and one of the club's greatest idols for the club Universidad de Chile, he was one of the leaders of the Blue Ballet era (1959–1969). is remembered for having been the leader of the Chile national team that placed third in the 1962 FIFA World Cup and was one of the prominent participants in the infamous match against Italy. In that match Sanchez had a number of scuffles with Mario David the Italian defender who was eventually sent off for a head high tackle on Sanchez. In La Roja, Leonel Sánchez is the seventh all-time top scorer with a total of 24 goals and 13 assists. His performances both at the Universidad of Chile and in the national team made him recognized by the IFFHS as the 40th Best South American Footballer of the 20th Century, surpassing several international players such as his compatriot Iván Zamorano, Brazilians Domingos da Guia and Ademir Marques de Menezes, Uruguayan José Pedro Cea and Argentine Raimundo Orsi.

4. Alexis Sánchez (b. 1988)

With an HPI of 57.69, Alexis Sánchez is the 4th most famous Chilean Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 69 different languages.

Alexis Alejandro Sánchez Sánchez (Spanish pronunciation: [aˈleksis ˈsantʃes]; born 19 December 1988), also known mononymously as Alexis, is a Chilean professional footballer who plays as a forward for Serie A club Udinese and the Chile national team. He is often regarded as the greatest Chilean player of all time alongside Elías Figueroa. Dubbed "El Niño Maravilla" (The Wonder Child), Sánchez began his senior club career playing for Cobreloa, aged 15, and signed with Udinese in 2006, aged 18; he won consecutive league titles while on loan to Colo-Colo and River Plate. Sánchez was the subject of a record association football transfer when he signed for Barcelona in 2011 in a transfer worth €37.5 million, becoming the most expensive Chilean player of all time. There, Sánchez won six trophies, including a La Liga title and a Copa del Rey. He then joined Arsenal in 2014 in a transfer worth £31.7 million (€35 million), and won two FA Cups, the 2015 PFA Fans' Player of the Year, and was voted into the 2015 PFA Team of the Year. In 2018, he moved to league rivals Manchester United in a swap deal; he signed for Inter Milan a year later, and won a Serie A title and a Coppa Italia. In August 2022, he signed for Ligue 1 club Marseille. Having played only one season for the French side, Sánchez returned to Inter Milan in the summer of 2023. Sánchez made his senior international debut for Chile in 2006 at age 18, and has since earned 166 caps, appearing in eight major tournaments and becoming both his country's most capped player and all-time top goalscorer. He led Chile to their first victory in a major tournament by winning the 2015 Copa América, scoring the winning penalty in the final; he captained the team to a repeat of this triumph at the Copa América Centenario (2016), winning the Golden Ball for Best Player.

5. Arturo Vidal (b. 1987)

With an HPI of 57.22, Arturo Vidal is the 5th most famous Chilean Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 68 different languages.

Arturo Erasmo Vidal Pardo (Spanish pronunciation: [aɾˈtuɾo eˈɾasmo βiˈðal ˈpaɾðo]; born 22 May 1987) is a Chilean professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Chilean Primera División club Colo-Colo and the Chile national team. His displays during his time at Juventus led him to be nicknamed Il Guerriero ("The Warrior"), Rey Arturo ("King Arthur") and La Piranha by the Italian press due to his hard-tackling and aggressive, tenacious style of play. He is regarded as one of the greatest Chilean players of all time and as one of the best Midfielders of his generation. Vidal started his career with Colo-Colo, where he won three Chilean Primera División titles. He relocated to Europe, where he joined Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen and played there for four seasons. He then moved to Juventus in 2011, where he became widely recognized as one of the best midfielders in world football. At Juventus, he won the Scudetti in all four of his seasons and also was integral for them in reaching the final of the UEFA Champions League in 2015. Vidal was named to the ten-man shortlist for the 2015 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award following his performances. On 28 July 2015, Vidal returned to the Bundesliga, joining Bayern Munich and won three consecutive Bundesliga titles. After three years at Munich, he signed for La Liga giants Barcelona, where he won his eighth straight league title. In 2020 he returned to the Serie A to sign for Inter Milan, where he won yet another Serie A title and Coppa Italia. Vidal has earned over 140 caps for the Chile national team since his debut in 2007, playing in the 2011, 2015, 2016, 2019 and 2021 Copa América tournaments, and helping his nation to victory in the 2015 and 2016 editions. He also participated at the FIFA World Cup in 2010 and 2014, and the FIFA Confederations Cup in 2017.

6. Marcelo Salas (b. 1974)

With an HPI of 54.72, Marcelo Salas is the 6th most famous Chilean Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 44 different languages.

José Marcelo Salas Melinao (Latin American Spanish: [maɾˈselo ˈsalas]; born 24 December 1974), nicknamed Matador (due to his goalscoring celebrations), El Fenómeno and Shileno, is a Chilean former footballer who played as a striker. Salas is considered the best striker in the history of Chile. He stood out during the 1990s and 2000s in clubs such as Universidad de Chile, River Plate, Lazio and Juventus. He was the captain of the Chile national team and the top scorer – scoring 45 goals in total: 37 goals for the Chile national football team (4 in World Cups, 18 in World Cup qualification processes and 15 in friendlies) and 8 goals with the Chile Olympic football team. He played in Chile, Argentina and Italy, winning titles with each club he joined. The IFFHS ranked him as the 31st best South American player of the 20th century, the 19th best South American forward of the 20th century and the 3rd best South American forward of the 1990s (integrating the podium with Brazilians players Ronaldo and Romário). In 1997 he ranked 3rd as the "best centre forward in the world" (after players Ronaldo and Gabriel Batistuta) and he was ranked 5th in the "Best Centre Forward" category in the RSS Award for the best footballer of the year, in 1998 and 1999. He was also named the South American Footballer of the Year in 1997. A powerful and tenacious forward, with good technique, who was well-known for his deft touch with his left foot, as well as his aerial ability, Salas had a prolific goalscoring record throughout his career. Between 1996 and 2001 he was considered one of the best forwards in the world, often compared to Ronaldo and Gabriel Batistuta. Salas is considered one of the greatest players in the history of Universidad de Chile, an icon for the football team River Plate of Argentina, and one of the greatest foreign players in Lazio's history. He played for the Chile national football team at the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France, where he scored four goals in four matches, leading his team to the second round of the competition. Additionally, Salas played for the Chile national football team at two Copa América tournaments, helping his team to reach fourth place in the 1999 edition of the tournament. Currently, after his retirement as a football player, he has continued linked to the sport, being since May 2013 the president of Deportes Temuco (a club that on that date absorbed Unión Temuco, owned by him from 2008 to April 2013). The club is now in 2nd division of Chile, the Primera B.

7. Guillermo Subiabre (1903 - 1964)

With an HPI of 53.92, Guillermo Subiabre is the 7th most famous Chilean Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 26 different languages.

Guillermo Subiabre Astorga (25 February 1903 – 11 April 1964) was a Chilean footballer. During his career he played for Colo-Colo (1927–1934), Santiago Wanderers, and the Chile national football team. He also participated in the 1928 Summer Olympics and in the 1930 FIFA World Cup. At Colo-Colo, Subiabre played as a striker for eight seasons, six of which were part of the amateur period and two of which were part of the professional period. In 1934, he was recognized as a lifetime honorary player for Colo-Colo.

8. Jorge Toro (1939 - 2024)

With an HPI of 53.16, Jorge Toro is the 8th most famous Chilean Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Jorge Luis Toro Sánchez (10 January 1939 – 16 February 2024) was a Chilean footballer who played as a midfielder. He represented his native country at the 1962 FIFA World Cup in Chile. He scored the second goal in Chile's 2-0 win over Italy at that tournament, in a match that is remembered as the Battle of Santiago. Toro died in El Quisco on 16 February 2024, at the age of 85.

9. Roberto Rojas (b. 1957)

With an HPI of 52.92, Roberto Rojas is the 9th most famous Chilean Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Roberto Antonio Rojas Saavedra (born 8 August 1957), nicknamed El Cóndor, is a retired Chilean football goalkeeper. In 1989, he deliberately injured himself during a World Cup qualifying match in an attempt to avoid a loss by the Chile national team. The incident resulted in a lifetime ban for Rojas and one World Cup ban for Chile. His ban was subsequently lifted in 2001.

10. Claudio Bravo (b. 1983)

With an HPI of 52.59, Claudio Bravo is the 10th most famous Chilean Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 61 different languages.

Claudio Andrés Bravo Muñoz (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈklawðjo ˈβɾaβo]; born 13 April 1983) is a Chilean former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Bravo began his career with Colo-Colo and moved to Real Sociedad in 2006, appearing in 237 official games with the latter club. Barcelona signed him for €12 million in 2014, and he won the treble and the Zamora Trophy in his first season. In the summer of 2016, he moved to Manchester City, where he won several titles. After four years in England, Bravo returned to Spain, signing for Real Betis, before announcing his retirement in 2024 at the age of 41. With 150 total appearances, Bravo is the third-most capped player in the history of the Chile national team, behind only Alexis Sánchez and Gary Medel. He represented the nation in two FIFA World Cups, a FIFA Confederations Cup, and seven Copa América tournaments, captaining his side to victory at the 2015 and 2016 editions of the latter competition.

People

Pantheon has 201 people classified as Chilean soccer players born between 1896 and 2000. Of these 201, 142 (70.65%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Chilean soccer players include Elías Figueroa, Iván Zamorano, and Alexis Sánchez. The most famous deceased Chilean soccer players include Leonel Sánchez, Guillermo Subiabre, and Jorge Toro. As of April 2024, 62 new Chilean soccer players have been added to Pantheon including Manuel Álvarez, Atilio Cremaschi, and Fernando Campos.