The Most Famous

SOCCER PLAYERS from Uruguay

This page contains a list of the greatest Uruguayan Soccer Players. The pantheon dataset contains 21,273 Soccer Players, 258 of which were born in Uruguay. This makes Uruguay the birth place of the 11th most number of Soccer Players behind Netherlands, and Sweden.

Top 10

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

1. José Nasazzi (1901 - 1968)

With an HPI of 64.00, José Nasazzi is the most famous Uruguayan Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 45 different languages on wikipedia.

José Nasazzi Yarza (24 March 1901 – 17 June 1968) was a Uruguayan footballer who played as a right-back or centre-back. He captained his country when they won the inaugural FIFA World Cup in 1930.

2. Alcides Ghiggia (1926 - 2015)

With an HPI of 63.72, Alcides Ghiggia is the 2nd most famous Uruguayan Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 45 different languages.

Alcides Edgardo Ghiggia Pereyra (pronounced [ˈɡiddʒa]; 22 December 1926 – 16 July 2015) was a Uruguayan football player, who played as a right winger. He achieved lasting fame for his decisive role in the final match of the 1950 World Cup, and at the time of his death exactly 65 years later, he was also the last surviving player of the Uruguay squad at the 1950 World Cup.

3. Juan Alberto Schiaffino (1925 - 2002)

With an HPI of 63.44, Juan Alberto Schiaffino is the 3rd most famous Uruguayan Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 43 different languages.

Juan Alberto "Pepe" Schiaffino Villalba (Italian pronunciation: [skjafˈfiːno]; 28 July 1925 – 13 November 2002) was an Uruguayan football player who played as an attacking midfielder or forward. A highly skilful and creative playmaker, at club level, he played for Peñarol in Uruguay, and for AC Milan, and Roma in Italy. At international level, he won the 1950 FIFA World Cup with the Uruguay national team, and also took part at the 1954 FIFA World Cup; he later also represented the Italy national football team. He was ranked as the best Uruguayan footballer of all time by an IFFHS poll, and the 17th greatest player of the twentieth century.

4. José Leandro Andrade (1901 - 1957)

With an HPI of 63.34, José Leandro Andrade is the 4th most famous Uruguayan Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 45 different languages.

José Leandro Andrade Quiroz (22 November 1901 – 5 October 1957) was a Uruguayan professional footballer who played as a wing-half. He was nicknamed "the Black Marvel" (maravilla negra). During his prime he was regarded as one of the finest players in the world, contributing to the Uruguay national team's domination of international football during the 1920s, winning two consecutive Olympic gold medals and then the inaugural FIFA World Cup.

5. Héctor Scarone (1898 - 1967)

With an HPI of 62.97, Héctor Scarone is the 5th most famous Uruguayan Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 41 different languages.

Héctor Pedro Scarone Berreta (26 November 1898 – 4 April 1967) was a Uruguayan footballer who played as inside forward. Known as "the Gardel of Football" and El Mago ("the Magician") due to his extraordinary skills with the ball, Scarone was considered one of the best players in the world during his time. He was crowned world champion three times, after winning the editions of the 1924 and 1928 Olympic football tournaments, along with the first World Cup in 1930. At club level, Scarone spent most of his career with Nacional, with which he won 21 official titles. He scored a total of 301 goals for the club in 369 appearances. Scarone holds the record of years played for Nacional, having spent 20 years with the club. He is also the 3rd. all-time Uruguayan Primera División with 163 goals, and the 2nd. all-time top scorer of Nacional (behind Atilio García) with 301 goals. With a height of 170 cm and thin legs, Scarone was rejected by Nacional at the age of 15. He returned one year later, being accepted by the club but sent to the reserve team. Nevertheless, Scarone would be promoted to the senior squad after playing only five matches in the reserve team. Apart from Nacional, Scarone also played for Spanish side Barcelona, and Italian clubs Inter Milan and Palermo. He was the younger brother of another legend of Nacional, Carlos Scarone.

6. Luis Suárez (b. 1987)

With an HPI of 62.24, Luis Suárez is the 6th most famous Uruguayan Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 101 different languages.

Luis Alberto Suárez Díaz (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈlwis ˈswaɾes]; born 24 January 1987) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Major League Soccer club Inter Miami. Nicknamed "El Pistolero" ("The Gunman"), he is widely regarded as one of the best players of his generation and one of the greatest strikers of all time. Individually, he has won two European Golden Shoes, an Eredivisie Golden Boot, a Premier League Golden Boot and a Pichichi Trophy. He has scored over 500 career goals for club and country. Suárez began his senior club career at Nacional in 2005. At age 19, he signed for Groningen, before transferring to Ajax in 2007. There, he won the KNVB Cup and the Eredivisie. In 2011, Suárez signed for Premier League club Liverpool, and won the League Cup in his first full season. Having established a strike partnership with Daniel Sturridge, he equalled the goalscoring record for a 38-game Premier League season and won his first European Golden Shoe in 2014. That summer, Suárez moved to Barcelona in a transfer worth £64.98 million (€82.3 million adjusted for inflation), making him one of the most expensive players of all time. Suárez was part of a dominant trio dubbed MSN alongside Lionel Messi and Neymar, winning the treble of La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the UEFA Champions League in his first season. In his second season, he won the Pichichi Trophy and his second European Golden Shoe, becoming the first player since 2009 to win both awards other than Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo. He also led La Liga in assists, becoming the first player to do so in both goals and assists in league history. With Barcelona, Suárez won ten additional trophies, including three La Liga titles and three Copas del Rey. He signed for Atlético Madrid in 2020, winning his fifth La Liga title in his debut season. At international level, Suárez is Uruguay's all-time leading goalscorer, and formerly held the title of highest scorer in CONMEBOL FIFA World Cup qualifiers before being surpassed by Lionel Messi. He has represented his nation at four editions of the FIFA World Cup and five editions of the Copa América, as well as the 2012 Summer Olympics and the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup. He was named in the 2010 World Cup All-Star Team and won the 2011 Copa América, where he was awarded Best Player. Outside of his football credentials, Suárez has been a source of controversy throughout his career, including a goal-line handball against Ghana at the 2010 FIFA World Cup, biting opponents on three occasions, accusations of diving, and racial incidents.

7. Héctor Castro (1904 - 1960)

With an HPI of 62.17, Héctor Castro is the 7th most famous Uruguayan Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 42 different languages.

Agustín Héctor Castro Rodríguez (29 November 1904 – 15 September 1960) was a Uruguayan football player and coach. He scored Uruguay's first ever goal in a World Cup against Peru at the inaugural FIFA World Cup in 1930 a tournament they would go on to win.

8. Enzo Francescoli (b. 1961)

With an HPI of 62.03, Enzo Francescoli is the 8th most famous Uruguayan Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 46 different languages.

Enzo Francescoli Uriarte (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈenso fɾanseˈskoljuˈɾjaɾte]; born 12 November 1961), nicknamed "El Príncipe" (lit. 'The Prince'), is a Uruguayan former footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He is regarded as one of the best playmakers of his generation and as one of Uruguay's and South America's greatest ever players. He represented his nation at two FIFA World Cups, in 1986 and 1990, also winning the Copa América in 1983, 1987 and 1995. At club level, Francescoli began his career with Uruguayan club Wanderers. In neighbouring Argentina, he played for River Plate. He was the leading scorer and a key player for the club's second Copa Libertadores title. Francescoli won a total of five Argentine titles in the six years in which he played for the club. He also enjoyed success in France with Racing Paris and Marseille, where his performances proved decisive as the team won the 1989–90 French Division 1. He later also had spells in Italy with Cagliari and Torino, before returning to River Plate, where he ended his career. He was considered an elite playmaker in the Uruguay national team. He played 73 times for the Celeste between 1982 and his retirement in 1997, making him the most capped outfield player in Uruguayan international football at the time. Francescoli was the only Uruguayan included by Pelé in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living footballers in 2004, and he was also elected by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics as the sixth-greatest Uruguayan player and the 24th greatest South American player of the 20th century.

9. Enrique Ballestrero (1905 - 1969)

With an HPI of 61.85, Enrique Ballestrero is the 9th most famous Uruguayan Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 39 different languages.

Enrique Pedro Ballestrero Griffo (18 January 1905 – 11 October 1969) was a Uruguayan footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He was a member of the Uruguay squad that won the 1930 FIFA World Cup. He played in all four matches of the tournament, including the final win against Argentina.

10. Diego Forlán (b. 1979)

With an HPI of 61.03, Diego Forlán is the 10th most famous Uruguayan Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 82 different languages.

Diego Forlán Corazo (born 19 May 1979) is a Uruguayan professional tennis player, football manager and former football player who played as a striker. Regarded as one of the best forwards of his generation, Forlán is a two-time winner of both the Pichichi Trophy and the European Golden Shoe at club level. With the Uruguay national team, he had notable individual success at the 2010 FIFA World Cup, finishing as joint top scorer with five goals, winning the goal of the tournament, and winning the Golden Ball as the tournament's best player. Forlán began his career in his native Uruguay as a youth player with Peñarol and Danubio, before joining Argentine club Independiente. After rising through their youth team and after a successful four-year spell, he sealed a move to England with Manchester United in 2002. His form for United was not as successful as at Independiente, although he won the Premier League in 2002–03 and the FA Cup in 2003–04. In the summer of 2004, Forlán moved to Spanish side Villarreal. In his first season in Spanish football, he won the Pichichi Trophy. After two more successful seasons with Villarreal, Forlán joined Atlético Madrid, where he once again became the league's top scorer, and became the first player to win the Pichichi Trophy twice since Ronaldo in 1996–97 and 2003–04. Forlán scored in Atlético's 2010 Europa League final victory against Fulham. In 2011, he joined Inter Milan of Italy before moving to Internacional in 2012. After spells in Japan with Cerezo Osaka, back in Uruguay with his boyhood club Peñarol, in India with Mumbai City and in Hong Kong with Kitchee, Forlán retired from professional football in August 2019. Forlán also had a successful international career, scoring 36 times for his country between his debut in 2002 and his retirement in 2015, including six goals at FIFA World Cups. On 12 July 2011, at the 2011 Copa América in Argentina, which Uruguay won, Forlán earned his 79th international cap in a match against Mexico, breaking the record held since 1986 by goalkeeper Rodolfo Rodríguez. On 20 June 2013, in a match against Nigeria at the 2013 Confederations Cup, Forlán became the first Uruguayan to win 100 caps. Forlán was Uruguay's all-time leading top scorer from 2011 until Luis Suárez overtook him two years later.

People

Pantheon has 316 people classified as Uruguayan soccer players born between 1887 and 2001. Of these 316, 213 (67.41%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Uruguayan soccer players include Luis Suárez, Enzo Francescoli, and Diego Forlán. The most famous deceased Uruguayan soccer players include José Nasazzi, Alcides Ghiggia, and Juan Alberto Schiaffino. As of April 2024, 40 new Uruguayan soccer players have been added to Pantheon including Luis Maidana, Carlos Scarone, and Ramón Alberto Villaverde.