Every four years, the FIFA World Cup brings together many of the game’s brightest stars and pits them against each other on the field in a constant tug-of-war for the title of world’s best. On both a team and individual level, your performance at the tournament will completely shape your legacy in the game, with four weeks often serving as a referendum on an entire career.
It may be a cliché to say that legends are made at the World Cup, but it’s basically true. Pele and Diego Maradona were brilliant for their clubs, of course, but do we remember them for that? Of course not. We remember them for their exploits at the World Cup, especially their memorable goals that demonstrated their dominance over the sport.
You don’t necessarily have to be a big name to score at the World Cup, but when you do, your name is forever linked to that one blaze of glory. There have been numerous individual moments of brilliance throughout the 20 tournaments that have been played since its founding in 1930, but these are the 25 Greatest Goals in World Cup History.