The Most Famous
SOCCER PLAYERS from Iceland
This page contains a list of the greatest Icelander Soccer Players. The pantheon dataset contains 21,273 Soccer Players, 49 of which were born in Iceland. This makes Iceland the birth place of the 56th most number of Soccer Players behind Finland, and North Macedonia.
Top 10
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Icelander Soccer Players of all time. This list of famous Icelander 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 Icelander Soccer Players.
1. Eiður Guðjohnsen (b. 1978)
With an HPI of 50.67, Eiður Guðjohnsen is the most famous Icelander Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 51 different languages on wikipedia.
Eiður Smári Guðjohnsen (transliterated as Eidur Smari Gudjohnsen; born 15 September 1978) is an Icelandic professional football coach and former player who played as a forward. Eiður saw his greatest success in England and Spain with Chelsea and Barcelona respectively, where he won the UEFA Champions League and La Liga with the latter and the League Cup and Premiership twice with the former. Along with two spells at Bolton Wanderers fourteen years apart, he also played in Iceland, the Netherlands, France, Greece, Belgium, China, Norway and India in a club career lasting 23 years. He is regarded by many to be the greatest Icelandic footballer of all time. Eiður is the son of Arnór Guðjohnsen, who was also an Icelandic international footballer. He made his full international debut for Iceland as a substitute for his father in 1996, scoring 26 international goals in 88 caps between 1996 and 2016. He was the captain of the Iceland national team until Ólafur Jóhannesson took over the role of manager. He was part of their squad that reached the quarter-finals of UEFA Euro 2016, their first major tournament.
2. Ásgeir Sigurvinsson (b. 1955)
With an HPI of 48.32, Ásgeir Sigurvinsson is the 2nd most famous Icelander Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 21 different languages.
Ásgeir "Sigi" Sigurvinsson (born 8 May 1955 in Vestmannaeyjar) is an Icelandic retired football attacking midfielder and coach. He spent most of his career at Standard Liège and in Germany, amassing Bundesliga totals of 211 games and 39 goals for two clubs, mainly Stuttgart.
3. Arnór Guðjohnsen (b. 1961)
With an HPI of 45.28, Arnór Guðjohnsen is the 3rd most famous Icelander Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.
Arnór Guðjohnsen (born 30 April 1961) is an Icelandic former professional footballer who played as a striker. He spent seven years with Belgian club Anderlecht and was the top scorer in the 1986–87 season. He is the father of striker Eiður Guðjohnsen and the grandfather of striker Sveinn Aron Guðjohnsen. His younger son, also named Arnór, signed for Swansea City in July 2017, at the age of 16.
4. Alfreð Finnbogason (b. 1989)
With an HPI of 43.22, Alfreð Finnbogason is the 4th most famous Icelander Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 49 different languages.
Alfreð Finnbogason (born 1 February 1989) is an Icelandic former professional footballer who most recently played as a striker for Challenger Pro League club Eupen. With Heerenveen, Alfreð was the Dutch Eredivisie's top scorer in the 2013–14 season with 29 goals, a tally topped only by Luis Suárez, Cristiano Ronaldo and Jonathan Soriano in Europe's top leagues that season. Alfreð made his debut for the Iceland national team against the Faroe Islands in 2010. He has earned 72 caps to date, scoring 18 goals. He was part of their squad at UEFA Euro 2016 and the 2018 FIFA World Cup, where he became the first Icelander to score a goal in the FIFA World Cup.
5. Atli Eðvaldsson (1957 - 2019)
With an HPI of 42.29, Atli Eðvaldsson is the 5th most famous Icelander Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.
Atli Eðvaldsson (3 March 1957 – 2 September 2019) was an Icelandic professional footballer who played as a midfielder, widely regarded as one of the most influential players to come from Iceland. During his career, he won the Icelandic championship three times and the Icelandic Cup four times. After retiring from playing, he became a well-known manager. In 1999, he guided Knattspyrnufélag Reykjavíkur to its first championship in 31 years. Atli played 70 games for the Icelandic national team from 1976 to 1991. He later coached the national team from 1999 to 2003.
6. Gylfi Sigurðsson (b. 1989)
With an HPI of 42.13, Gylfi Sigurðsson is the 6th most famous Icelander Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 53 different languages.
Gylfi Þór Sigurðsson (Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈcɪlvɪ ˈθouːr̥ ˈsɪːɣʏrðsɔn]; transliterated as Gylfi Thor Sigurdsson; born 8 September 1989) is an Icelandic professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Besta deild karla club Valur and the Iceland national team. Gylfi began his professional career with Reading in the Championship and in 2010, was sold to TSG Hoffenheim, which was Reading's biggest sale at the time. He was voted Player of the Season for two consecutive seasons: for Reading in 2009–10 and for Hoffenheim in 2010–11. After a season back in English football with Swansea City, he joined Tottenham Hotspur for a reported £8 million transfer fee. In 2014, he moved back to Swansea as part of an exchange for Ben Davies. In 2017, he transferred to Everton for a then club-record transfer fee of £40 million, and remained there for five years. In 2021 he was arrested on suspicion of child sexual offences, and was freed without charge in 2023. He then resumed his career with Lyngby in Denmark and Valur in Iceland. Gylfi made his debut for Iceland in 2010. He played for the team at their first major tournament, UEFA Euro 2016, where it reached the quarter-finals. He also played at his national team's first ever FIFA World Cup in 2018. As of 10 October 2024, Gylfi has obtained 83 caps and scored 27 goals, making him Iceland's all-time top scorer.
7. Kolbeinn Sigþórsson (b. 1990)
With an HPI of 41.90, Kolbeinn Sigþórsson is the 7th most famous Icelander Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 43 different languages.
Kolbeinn Sigþórsson (Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈkʰɔlpei̯tn̥ ˈsɪxθou̯r̥sɔn]; born 14 March 1990) is an Icelandic former professional footballer who played as a forward. Kolbeinn came through Víkingur Reykjavik's youth program and made his professional debut with HK Kópavogur at 16 years of age. In 2007, he moved to the Netherlands to continue his development with AZ Alkmaar. A successful debut season in the Eredivisie prompted a transfer to Ajax in 2011, where he became a first team regular. In 2015, he joined Nantes in Ligue 1; injuries, however, hindered his spell at the club, which included a brief loan to Galatasaray in 2016. After a period in Sweden, playing for AIK and IFK Göteborg, he retired from football in 2021. For the Iceland national team, Kolbeinn made 64 appearances and scored 26 goals between 2010 and 2021. He was a member of the UEFA Euro 2016 team. As a youth, he had also previously appeared at under-17, under-19 and under-21 levels.
8. Heimir Hallgrímsson (b. 1967)
With an HPI of 41.83, Heimir Hallgrímsson is the 8th most famous Icelander Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 28 different languages.
Heimir Hallgrímsson (born 10 June 1967) is an Icelandic football manager and former player who is the current manager of the Republic of Ireland men's national team.
9. Hannes Þór Halldórsson (b. 1984)
With an HPI of 41.62, Hannes Þór Halldórsson is the 9th most famous Icelander Soccer Player. Her biography has been translated into 43 different languages.
Hannes Þór Halldórsson (born 27 April 1984) is an Icelandic filmmaker and former professional footballer. He was a member of the Iceland national team where he was capped 77 times and appeared at UEFA Euro 2016 and the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
10. Ragnar Sigurðsson (b. 1986)
With an HPI of 41.14, Ragnar Sigurðsson is the 10th most famous Icelander Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 43 different languages.
Ragnar Sigurðsson (born 19 June 1986) is an Icelandic former professional footballer who played as centre-back. Beginning his career with Fylkir, he went on to represent IFK Göteborg, Copenhagen, Krasnodar, Fulham, Rubin Kazan, Rostov, and Rukh Lviv before retiring at Fylkir in 2021. A full international between 2007 and 2020, he won 97 caps for the Iceland national team and represented his country at the UEFA Euro 2016, reaching the quarter-finals, and the 2018 FIFA World Cup. In November 2022 Ragnar was introduced as assistant-manager of Fram Reykjavik and in July 2023 he became a caretaker-manager of the side following the departure of his predecessor Jón Þórir Sveinsson.
People
Pantheon has 51 people classified as Icelander soccer players born between 1950 and 1999. Of these 51, 49 (96.08%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Icelander soccer players include Eiður Guðjohnsen, Ásgeir Sigurvinsson, and Arnór Guðjohnsen. The most famous deceased Icelander soccer players include Atli Eðvaldsson, and Jóhannes Eðvaldsson. As of April 2024, 2 new Icelander soccer players have been added to Pantheon including Elías Már Ómarsson, and Alfons Sampsted.
Living Icelander Soccer Players
Go to all Rankings
Eiður Guðjohnsen
1978 - Present
HPI: 50.67
Ásgeir Sigurvinsson
1955 - Present
HPI: 48.32
Arnór Guðjohnsen
1961 - Present
HPI: 45.28
Alfreð Finnbogason
1989 - Present
HPI: 43.22
Gylfi Sigurðsson
1989 - Present
HPI: 42.13
Kolbeinn Sigþórsson
1990 - Present
HPI: 41.90
Heimir Hallgrímsson
1967 - Present
HPI: 41.83
Hannes Þór Halldórsson
1984 - Present
HPI: 41.62
Ragnar Sigurðsson
1986 - Present
HPI: 41.14
Birkir Bjarnason
1988 - Present
HPI: 41.01
Birkir Már Sævarsson
1984 - Present
HPI: 39.42
Aron Gunnarsson
1989 - Present
HPI: 38.67
