The Most Famous

SOCCER PLAYERS from El Salvador

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This page contains a list of the greatest Salvadoran Soccer Players. The pantheon dataset contains 21,273 Soccer Players, 9 of which were born in El Salvador. This makes El Salvador the birth place of the 100th most number of Soccer Players behind Cyprus, and Guadeloupe.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Salvadoran Soccer Players of all time. This list of famous Salvadoran 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 Salvadoran Soccer Players.

Photo of Mágico González

1. Mágico González (b. 1958)

With an HPI of 52.73, Mágico González is the most famous Salvadoran Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 21 different languages on wikipedia.

Jorge Alberto González Barillas (born 13 March 1958), popularly known as El Mágico ("The Magical One" or "The Wizard"), is a Salvadoran former professional footballer who played mainly as a forward. At the club level, he played mainly for FAS and Spain's Cádiz in a 24-year senior career. Dogged by his self-admitted and often-reported lack of discipline, he was often hailed as the greatest and most skilled footballer ever produced by El Salvador, and as one of the greatest players from the CONCACAF region. González represented the El Salvador national team for more than two decades, taking part in the 1982 World Cup and the 1998 Gold Cup.

Photo of Jaime Rodríguez

2. Jaime Rodríguez (b. 1959)

With an HPI of 50.22, Jaime Rodríguez is the 2nd most famous Salvadoran Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 46 different languages.

Jaime Alberto Rodríguez Jiménez (born 17 January 1959) is a former football player from El Salvador. He represented his country at the 1982 FIFA World Cup in Spain.

Photo of Raúl Magaña

3. Raúl Magaña (1940 - 2009)

With an HPI of 43.00, Raúl Magaña is the 3rd most famous Salvadoran Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Raúl Alfredo Magaña Monzón (24 February 1940 – 30 September 2009) was a Salvadoran footballer and manager.

Photo of Pipo Rodríguez

4. Pipo Rodríguez (b. 1945)

With an HPI of 42.03, Pipo Rodríguez is the 4th most famous Salvadoran Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Mauricio Alonso "Pipo" Rodríguez Lindo (born 12 September 1945) is a retired footballer from El Salvador. He represented his country at the 1968 Olympic Games, 1970 FIFA World Cup Mexico and coached them at the 1982 FIFA World Cup Spain.

Photo of Hugo Pérez

5. Hugo Pérez (b. 1963)

With an HPI of 39.51, Hugo Pérez is the 5th most famous Salvadoran Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

Hugo Ernesto Pérez Granados (born November 8, 1963) is a former professional soccer player and coach who previously coached the El Salvador national from 2021 to 2023. Born in El Salvador, he represented the United States national team. During his fourteen-year career, he played professionally in the United States, France, Sweden, Saudi Arabia and his native El Salvador. Although born in El Salvador, he gained his U.S. citizenship as a youth and earned 73 caps, scoring sixteen goals, with the U.S. national team between 1984 and 1994. He was a member of the U.S. team at both the 1984 Summer Olympics and the 1994 FIFA World Cup. He was the 1991 U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year and was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 2008.

Photo of Luis Ramírez Zapata

6. Luis Ramírez Zapata (b. 1954)

With an HPI of 39.36, Luis Ramírez Zapata is the 6th most famous Salvadoran Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Luis Baltazar Ramírez Zapata (born 6 January 1954) is a retired Salvadoran football forward, who played for the El Salvador national team for nearly two decades.

Photo of Ever Hernández

7. Ever Hernández (b. 1958)

With an HPI of 37.89, Ever Hernández is the 7th most famous Salvadoran Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Francisco Éver Hernández Rodríguez (born December 11, 1958) is a retired football player from El Salvador who represented his country at the 1982 FIFA World Cup in Spain.

Photo of José María Rivas

8. José María Rivas (1958 - 2016)

With an HPI of 36.08, José María Rivas is the 8th most famous Salvadoran Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

José María Rivas Martínez (12 May 1958 – 9 January 2016) was a football player from El Salvador.

Photo of Raúl Díaz Arce

9. Raúl Díaz Arce (b. 1970)

With an HPI of 34.47, Raúl Díaz Arce is the 9th most famous Salvadoran Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Raúl Díaz Arce (born February 1, 1970) is a Salvadoran former professional footballer who played as a forward. He is El Salvador's most prolific goal scorer, with 39 goals in just 68 appearances.

Photo of Alfredo Pacheco

10. Alfredo Pacheco (1982 - 2015)

With an HPI of 30.47, Alfredo Pacheco is the 10th most famous Salvadoran Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Alfredo Alberto Pacheco (December 1, 1982 – December 27, 2015) was a Salvadoran footballer who had the record for most appearances on the El Salvador national football team when he was banned for life in 2013, for match-fixing while playing for the national team. He was murdered on December 27, 2015.

People

Pantheon has 12 people classified as Salvadoran soccer players born between 1940 and 1989. Of these 12, 9 (75.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Salvadoran soccer players include Mágico González, Jaime Rodríguez, and Pipo Rodríguez. The most famous deceased Salvadoran soccer players include Raúl Magaña, José María Rivas, and Alfredo Pacheco. As of April 2024, 4 new Salvadoran soccer players have been added to Pantheon including Pipo Rodríguez, Ever Hernández, and Rodolfo Zelaya.

Living Salvadoran Soccer Players

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Deceased Salvadoran Soccer Players

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Newly Added Salvadoran Soccer Players (2024)

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