The FIFA 100 is a list of Brazilian footballer Pelé's choice of the "greatest living footballers". Unveiled on 4 March 2004 at a gala ceremony in London, England, the list was part of the celebrations commemorating the 100th anniversary of the foundation of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the international governing body of football.
The figure 100 refers to the 100th anniversary of FIFA and not the number of players listed, which is actually 125. Pelé was asked to select 50 active players and 50 retired players, from a shortlist of 300, but found it too difficult to limit the number of retired players to 50.[1] The list contains 123 men and two women (Michelle Akers and Mia Hamm). At the time the FIFA 100 was unveiled, 50 of the players were still active, with the remaining 75 retired from the game.
Criticism
Writing in the Evening Standard, politician turned football pundit, David Mellor, felt the selections were politically motivated rather than being made on purely footballing grounds.[2] He suggested the geographical spread of inclusions indicated the list came from, then-FIFA president, Sepp Blatter. BBC columnist Tim Vickery expressed similar assertions.[3]
Brazilian midfielder Gérson, who played alongside Pelé at the 1966 and 1970 FIFA World Cups, reacted to his omission by tearing up a copy of the list on a Brazilian television programme.[4] Marco van Basten and Uwe Seeler refused to take part in the project on a point of principle.[5]
List
Following is the list of the "FIFA 100" greatest living footballers as nominated by Pelé in March 2004.[6][7][8][9]
| Player | Nationality | Position | Status | Born | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gabriel Batistuta |  Argentina | Forward | Active | 1969 | — |
| Hernán Crespo | Argentina | Forward | Active | 1975 | — |
| Alfredo Di Stéfano | Argentina[a] | Forward | Retired | 1926 | 2014 |
| Mario Kempes | Argentina | Forward | Retired | 1954 | — |
| Diego Maradona | Argentina | Midfielder | Retired | 1960 | 2020 |
| Daniel Passarella | Argentina | Defender | Retired | 1953 | — |
| Javier Saviola | Argentina | Forward | Active | 1981 | — |
| Omar Sívori | Argentina[b] | Forward | Retired | 1935 | 2005 |
| Juan Sebastián Verón | Argentina | Midfielder | Active | 1975 | — |
| Javier Zanetti | Argentina | Defender/Midfielder | Active | 1973 | — |
| Jan Ceulemans |  Belgium | Midfielder | Retired | 1957 | — |
| Jean-Marie Pfaff | Belgium | Goalkeeper | Retired | 1953 | — |
| Franky Van der Elst | Belgium | Midfielder | Retired | 1961 | — |
| Carlos Alberto |  Brazil | Defender | Retired | 1944 | 2016 |
| Cafu | Brazil | Defender | Active | 1970 | — |
| Falcão | Brazil | Midfielder | Retired | 1953 | — |
| Júnior | Brazil | Midfielder | Retired | 1954 | — |
| Pelé | Brazil | Forward | Retired | 1940 | 2022 |
| Rivaldo | Brazil | Midfielder | Active | 1972 | — |
| Rivellino | Brazil | Midfielder | Retired | 1946 | — |
| Roberto Carlos | Brazil | Defender | Active | 1973 | — |
| Romário | Brazil | Forward | Active | 1966 | — |
| Ronaldinho | Brazil | Midfielder/Forward | Active | 1980 | — |
| Ronaldo | Brazil | Forward | Active | 1976 | — |
| Djalma Santos | Brazil | Defender | Retired | 1929 | 2013 |
| Nílton Santos | Brazil | Defender | Retired | 1925 | 2013 |
| Sócrates | Brazil | Midfielder | Retired | 1954 | 2011 |
| Zico | Brazil | Midfielder/Forward | Retired | 1953 | — |
| Hristo Stoichkov |  Bulgaria | Forward | Retired | 1966 | — |
| Roger Milla |  Cameroon | Forward | Retired | 1952 | — |
| Elías Figueroa |  Chile | Defender | Retired | 1946 | — |
| Iván Zamorano | Chile | Forward | Retired | 1967 | — |
| Carlos Valderrama |  Colombia | Midfielder | Retired | 1961 | — |
| Davor Šuker |  Croatia[c] | Forward | Retired | 1968 | — |
| Josef Masopust |  Czech Republic[d] | Midfielder | Retired | 1931 | 2015 |
| Pavel Nedvěd | Czech Republic | Midfielder | Active | 1972 | — |
| Brian Laudrup |  Denmark | Forward | Retired | 1969 | — |
| Michael Laudrup | Denmark | Midfielder | Retired | 1964 | — |
| Peter Schmeichel | Denmark | Goalkeeper | Retired | 1963 | — |
| Gordon Banks |  England | Goalkeeper | Retired | 1937 | 2019 |
| David Beckham | England | Midfielder | Active | 1975 | — |
| Bobby Charlton | England | Midfielder | Retired | 1937 | 2023 |
| Kevin Keegan | England | Forward | Retired | 1951 | — |
| Gary Lineker | England | Forward | Retired | 1960 | — |
| Michael Owen | England | Forward | Active | 1979 | — |
| Alan Shearer | England | Forward | Active | 1970 | — |
| Eric Cantona |  France | Forward | Retired | 1966 | — |
| Marcel Desailly | France | Defender | Active | 1968 | — |
| Didier Deschamps | France | Midfielder | Retired | 1968 | — |
| Just Fontaine | France | Forward | Retired | 1933 | 2023 |
| Thierry Henry | France | Forward | Active | 1977 | — |
| Raymond Kopa | France | Forward | Retired | 1931 | 2017 |
| Jean-Pierre Papin | France | Forward | Retired | 1963 | — |
| Robert Pires | France | Midfielder | Active | 1973 | — |
| Michel Platini | France[e] | Forward | Retired | 1955 | — |
| Lilian Thuram | France | Defender | Active | 1972 | — |
| Marius Trésor | France | Defender | Retired | 1950 | — |
| David Trezeguet | France | Forward | Active | 1977 | — |
| Patrick Vieira | France | Midfielder | Active | 1976 | — |
| Zinedine Zidane | France | Midfielder | Active | 1972 | — |
| Michael Ballack |  Germany | Midfielder | Active | 1976 | — |
| Franz Beckenbauer | Germany[f] | Defender | Retired | 1945 | 2024 |
| Paul Breitner | Germany[f] | Midfielder/Defender | Retired | 1951 | — |
| Oliver Kahn | Germany | Goalkeeper | Active | 1969 | — |
| Jürgen Klinsmann | Germany[g] | Forward | Retired | 1964 | — |
| Sepp Maier | Germany[f] | Goalkeeper | Retired | 1944 | — |
| Lothar Matthäus | Germany[g] | Midfielder/Defender | Retired | 1961 | — |
| Gerd Müller | Germany[f] | Forward | Retired | 1945 | 2021 |
| Karl-Heinz Rummenigge | Germany[f] | Forward | Retired | 1955 | — |
| Uwe Seeler | Germany[f] | Forward | Retired | 1936 | 2022 |
| Abedi Pele |  Ghana | Forward | Retired | 1964 | — |
| Ferenc Puskás |  Hungary[h] | Forward | Retired | 1927 | 2006 |
| Roberto Baggio |  Italy | Forward/Midfielder | Active | 1967 | — |
| Franco Baresi | Italy | Defender | Retired | 1960 | — |
| Giuseppe Bergomi | Italy | Defender | Retired | 1963 | — |
| Giampiero Boniperti | Italy | Forward | Retired | 1928 | 2021 |
| Gianluigi Buffon | Italy | Goalkeeper | Active | 1978 | — |
| Alessandro Del Piero | Italy | Forward | Active | 1974 | — |
| Giacinto Facchetti | Italy | Defender | Retired | 1942 | 2006 |
| Paolo Maldini | Italy | Defender | Active | 1968 | — |
| Alessandro Nesta | Italy | Defender | Active | 1976 | — |
| Gianni Rivera | Italy | Defender | Retired | 1943 | — |
| Paolo Rossi | Italy | Forward | Retired | 1956 | 2020 |
| Francesco Totti | Italy | Forward/Midfielder | Active | 1976 | — |
| Christian Vieri | Italy | Forward | Active | 1973 | — |
| Dino Zoff | Italy | Goalkeeper | Retired | 1942 | — |
| Hidetoshi Nakata |  Japan | Midfielder | Active | 1977 | — |
| George Weah |  Liberia | Forward | Retired | 1966 | — |
| Hugo Sánchez |  Mexico | Forward | Retired | 1958 | — |
| Marco van Basten |  Netherlands | Forward | Retired | 1964 | — |
| Dennis Bergkamp | Netherlands | Forward | Active | 1969 | — |
| Johan Cruyff | Netherlands | Forward | Retired | 1947 | 2016 |
| Edgar Davids | Netherlands | Midfielder | Active | 1973 | — |
| Ruud Gullit | Netherlands | Midfielder | Retired | 1962 | — |
| René van de Kerkhof | Netherlands | Midfielder | Retired | 1951 | — |
| Willy van de Kerkhof | Netherlands | Midfielder | Retired | 1951 | — |
| Patrick Kluivert | Netherlands | Forward | Active | 1976 | — |
| Johan Neeskens | Netherlands | Midfielder | Retired | 1951 | — |
| Ruud van Nistelrooy | Netherlands | Forward | Active | 1976 | — |
| Rob Rensenbrink | Netherlands | Forward | Retired | 1947 | 2020 |
| Frank Rijkaard | Netherlands | Midfielder/Defender | Retired | 1962 | — |
| Clarence Seedorf | Netherlands | Midfielder | Active | 1976 | — |
| Jay-Jay Okocha |  Nigeria | Midfielder | Active | 1973 | — |
| George Best |  Northern Ireland | Midfielder | Retired | 1946 | 2005 |
| Romerito |  Paraguay | Forward | Retired | 1960 | — |
| Teófilo Cubillas |  Peru | Forward | Retired | 1949 | — |
| Zbigniew Boniek |  Poland | Midfielder | Retired | 1956 | — |
| Eusébio |  Portugal | Forward | Retired | 1942 | 2014 |
| Luís Figo | Portugal | Midfielder | Active | 1972 | — |
| Rui Costa | Portugal | Midfielder | Active | 1972 | — |
| Roy Keane |  Republic of Ireland | Midfielder | Active | 1971 | — |
| Gheorghe Hagi |  Romania | Midfielder | Retired | 1965 | — |
| Rinat Dasayev |  Russia[i] | Goalkeeper | Retired | 1957 | — |
| Kenny Dalglish |  Scotland | Forward | Retired | 1951 | — |
| El Hadji Diouf |  Senegal | Forward | Active | 1981 | — |
| Hong Myung-bo |  South Korea | Defender | Active | 1969 | — |
| Emilio Butragueño |  Spain | Forward | Retired | 1963 | — |
| Luis Enrique | Spain | Midfielder | Active | 1970 | — |
| Raúl | Spain | Forward | Active | 1977 | — |
| Rüştü Reçber |  Turkey | Goalkeeper | Active | 1973 | — |
| Emre Belözoğlu | Turkey | Midfielder | Active | 1980 | — |
| Andriy Shevchenko |  Ukraine | Forward | Active | 1976 | — |
| Michelle Akers |  United States | Midfielder/Forward | Retired | 1966 | — |
| Mia Hamm | United States | Forward | Active | 1972 | — |
| Enzo Francescoli |  Uruguay | Forward/Midfielder | Retired | 1961 | — |
By playing position
| Position | No. |
|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | 9 |
| Defender | 20 |
| Midfielder | 43 |
| Forward | 53 |
By birth decade
| Decade | No. |
|---|---|
| 1920s | 5 |
| 1930s | 7 |
| 1940s | 15 |
| 1950s | 22 |
| 1960s | 35 |
| 1970s | 37 |
| 1980s | 4 |