View source for El Salvador at the FIFA World Cup

{{good article}}
{{Short description|Participation of El Salvador's national football team in the FIFA World Cup}}
{{use dmy dates|date=June 2023}}
{{use American English|date=June 2023}}

The [[El Salvador national football team]] has qualified for the [[FIFA World Cup]] final tournament on two occasions, the first time in [[1970 FIFA World Cup|1970]] in Mexico and the second time in [[1982 FIFA World Cup|1982]] in Spain. El Salvador has played in six group stage matches, losing all six and never advancing to the knockout stage.

El Salvador qualified for the 1970 FIFA World Cup, the first FIFA World Cup the country qualified for. During [[1970 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF)|qualification]], El Salvador played [[Honduras national football team|Honduras]] over three matches in June 1969, with El Salvador advancing to the next round of CONCACAF qualification. The matches between El Salvador and Honduras increased political tensions between both countries, resulting the outbreak of the [[Football War]] in July 1969 causing over 2,000 deaths. After defeating [[Haiti national football team|Haiti]] over three matches, El Salvador qualified. El Salvador lost all three matches it played against [[Belgium national football team|Belgium]], [[Mexico national football team|Mexico]], and the [[Soviet Union national football team|Soviet Union]] and failed to score a goal.

El Salvador next qualified for the 1982 FIFA World Cup as runners-up of the [[1981 CONCACAF Championship]]. As occurred in 1970, El Salvador lost all three of its matches against [[Hungary national football team|Hungary]], Belgium, and [[Argentina national football team|Argentina]]. The match against Hungary resulted in the [[Hungary v El Salvador (1982 FIFA World Cup)|largest defeat in FIFA World Cup history]] when El Salvador lost by a score of 10–1. El Salvador's lone goal in the match, scored by [[Luis Ramírez Zapata]] in the 64th minute, remains the only goal scored by El Salvador at the FIFA World Cup.

Since 1970, El Salvador has participated in every FIFA World Cup qualification but has failed to qualify for another FIFA World Cup since 1982. The country has selected 42 players to play at the FIFA World Cup across both times it qualified, 17 of which are tied for making the most appearances for El Salvador at 3 appearances each. [[Hernán Carrasco]] was the country's manager in 1970 while [[Pipo Rodríguez|Mauricio Rodríguez]] was the manager in 1982. El Salvador is ranked 80th (last place) all-time for its performance at the FIFA World Cup by the [[RSSSF|Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation]].

== History ==

=== 1970 Mexico ===

==== Qualification ====

El Salvador entered [[FIFA World Cup qualification]] for the first time for the [[1970 FIFA World Cup]].{{sfn|Courtney|2016}} During the first round of [[1970 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF)|CONCACAF qualifiers]], El Salvador was drawn into a double [[Round-robin tournament|round-robin group]] against [[Suriname national football team|Suriname]] and [[Netherlands Antilles national football team|Netherlands Antilles]], winning all four of its matches. El Salvador advanced to the second round with three wins and one loss.{{sfn|Stokkermans|Jarreta|2006}}

During the second round, El Salvador played [[Honduras national football team|Honduras]] in a [[two-legged tie]].{{sfn|Stokkermans|Jarreta|2006}} Prior to the matches, tensions were high between the Salvadoran and Honduran governments regarding the status of 300,000 illegal immigrants from El Salvador who were living and working in Honduras. Hondurans saw the Salvadoran immigrants as taking Honduran land and economically crippling the country,{{sfn|Haggerty|1990|p=25}} and the Honduran government announced in April 1969 that it would expel people who had acquired property under an agrarian reform who could not prove that they were Honduran citizens by birth.{{sfn|Lisi|2007|p=115}}

In the first leg, held in [[Tegucigalpa]] on 8 June 1969, Honduras defeated El Salvador by a score of 1–0. Reports were made that hostility between fans was present during the match. In the second leg, held in [[San Salvador]] on 15 June 1969, El Salvador defeated Honduras by a score of 3–0. Before the match, Salvadorans harassed the Honduran players as they were sleeping and the [[Flag of Honduras|Honduran national flag]] was desecrated. The defeat and actions by Salvadorans resulted in rioting in Honduran towns where many Salvadorans were killed and thousands fled the country; the Salvadoran government condemned the deaths as a "[[genocide]]" and demanded reparations.{{sfn|Lisi|2007|p=115}}{{sfn|Cable|1969|p=662}} A third leg was held in [[Mexico City]] on 27 June 1969 as both teams had won a match; El Salvador defeated Honduras by a score of 3–2 after an extra time goal by [[Pipo Rodríguez]] in the 101st minute.{{sfn|Luckhurst|2019}} Following the match, Honduras severed all diplomatic ties with El Salvador, and on 14 July 1969, the [[Salvadoran Army]] invaded Honduras beginning the [[Football War]]. The war ended on 20 July 1969 after the [[Organization of American States]] (OAS) negotiated a cease fire. The war killed over 2,000 people.{{sfn|Lisi|2007|p=115}}

After defeating Honduras in the third leg, El Salvador played a two-legged tie against [[Haiti national football team|Haiti]]; El Salvador defeated Haiti 2–1 in [[Port-au-Prince]] on 21 September 1969 and then Haiti defeated El Salvador 3–0 in San Salvador on 28 September 1969. A third leg was held in [[Kingston, Jamaica]] on 8 October 1969 as both teams had won a match, where El Salvador defeated Haiti 1–0 in extra time.{{sfn|Stokkermans|Jarreta|2006}} With the victory, El Salvador qualified for its first ever FIFA World Cup{{sfn|Lisi|2007|p=115}} and became the first [[Central America]]n country to qualify for the tournament.{{sfn|Oinam|2023}}

==== Final tournament ====

For the 1970 FIFA World Cup, El Salvador was drawn into [[1970 FIFA World Cup Group 1|Group 1]] along with [[Belgium national football team|Belgium]], [[Mexico national football team|Mexico]] (the tournament's host), and the [[Soviet Union national football team|Soviet Union]].{{sfn|Lisi|2007|p=116}} [[1970 FIFA World Cup squads#El Salvador|El Salvador's squad]] consisted of 22 players. Chilean [[Hernán Carrasco]] was the manager and [[Salvador Mariona]] was the [[Captain (association football)|captain]].<ref name="1970Squad">{{cite web|url=https://fbref.com/en/squads/fc3dbeaa/1970/El-Salvador-Men-Stats|title=1970 El Salvador Stats|language=en|work=[[Sports Reference|FB Reference]]|access-date=22 June 2023}}</ref>

El Salvador lost their first match against Belgium on 3 June 1982 by a score of 3–0; [[Wilfried Van Moer]] and [[Raoul Lambert]] scored Belgium's goals.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fbref.com/en/matches/0a864c7a/Belgium-El-Salvador-June-3-1970-FIFA-World-Cup|title=Belgium vs. El Salvador Match Report – Wednesday June 3, 1970|language=en|work=[[Sports Reference|FB Reference]]|access-date=22 June 2023}}</ref> In its second match against Mexico on 7 June 1970, El Salvador lost by a score of 4–0; [[Javier Valdivia]] (scored twice), [[Javier Fragoso]], and [[Juan Ignacio Basaguren]] scored Mexico's goals.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fbref.com/en/matches/7cac6d13/Mexico-El-Salvador-June-7-1970-FIFA-World-Cup|title=Mexico vs. El Salvador Match Report – Sunday June 7, 1970|language=en|work=[[Sports Reference|FB Reference]]|access-date=22 June 2023}}</ref> In El Salvador's final match, it lost to the Soviet Union by a score of 2–0 on 10 June 1970; both goals for the Soviet Union were scored by [[Anatoliy Byshovets]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fbref.com/en/matches/afadaa3f/Soviet-Union-El-Salvador-June-10-1970-FIFA-World-Cup|title=Soviet Union vs. El Salvador Match Report – Wednesday June 10, 1970|language=en|work=[[Sports Reference|FB Reference]]|access-date=22 June 2023}}</ref> El Salvador lost every match, failed to score a goal, and failed to advance to the [[1970 FIFA World Cup knockout stage|knockout stage]].<ref name="1970Squad" />{{sfn|Lisi|2007|pp=377–378}}

{{#invoke:Sports table|main|style=WDL
|teamwidth=180

|update=complete
|winpoints=2
|source=<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/archive/mexico1970/groups/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150224145302/http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/archive/mexico1970/groups/index.html |title=1970 FIFA World Cup Mexico Groups |language=en |publisher=FIFA |access-date=14 August 2023 |archive-date=24 February 2015}}</ref>

|team1=URS|team2=MEX |team3=BEL |team4=SLV
|result1=A |result2=A

|win_URS=2 |draw_URS=1 |loss_URS=0 |gf_URS=6 |ga_URS=1
|win_MEX=2 |draw_MEX=1 |loss_MEX=0 |gf_MEX=5 |ga_MEX=0
|win_BEL=1 |draw_BEL=0 |loss_BEL=2 |gf_BEL=4 |ga_BEL=5
|win_SLV=0 |draw_SLV=0 |loss_SLV=3 |gf_SLV=0 |ga_SLV=9

|name_SLV={{fb|SLV}}
|name_BEL={{fb|BEL}}
|name_MEX={{fb|MEX}}
|name_URS={{fb|URS|1955}}
|res_col_header=Q
|col_A=green1 |text_A=Advance to [[1970 FIFA World Cup#Knockout stage|knockout stage]]
|hth_URS=Having finished level on both points and goal difference, the Soviet Union and Mexico were separated by the drawing of lots.|hth_MEX=URS
}}

=== 1982 Spain ===

==== Qualification ====

Qualification for the [[1982 FIFA World Cup]] was determined via the [[1981 CONCACAF Championship]]. During the tournament, El Salvador won two matches, drew two, and lost one. Both Honduras, the tournament's winner, and El Salvador, the runner-up, both qualified for the 1982 FIFA World Cup.{{sfn|Reyes|Lugo|Mendoza|2023}}

==== Final tournament ====

For the 1982 FIFA World Cup, El Salvador was drawn into [[1982 FIFA World Cup Group 3|Group 3]] along with [[Argentina national football team|Argentina]], Belgium, and [[Hungary national football team|Hungary]].{{sfn|Lisi|2007|p=160}} [[1982 FIFA World Cup squads#El Salvador|El Salvador's squad]] consisted of 20 players,<ref name="1982Squad">{{cite web|url=https://fbref.com/en/squads/fc3dbeaa/1982/El-Salvador-Men-Stats|title=1982 El Salvador Stats|language=en|work=[[Sports Reference|FB Reference]]|access-date=22 June 2023}}</ref> rather than the 22 allowed as Salvadoran officials decided to bring some "cronies" in their place. The players were outraged once they found out and attempted to raise money to help [[Gilberto Quinteros]] and [[Miguel González (footballer, born 1951)|Miguel González]] (the two players left behind) come to Spain, but their effort failed as they were not able to raise enough money.{{sfn|Doyle|2018}} [[Pipo Rodríguez|Mauricio Rodríguez]], who played for El Salvador at the 1970 FIFA World Cup,<ref name="1970Squad" /> was the manager and [[Norberto Huezo]] was the captain.<ref name="1982Squad" />

According to a survey conducted by a Salvadoran radio station before El Salvador's first match against Hungary, 60 percent of respondents believed that El Salvador would win its first match. On 15 June 1982, [[Hungary v El Salvador (1982 FIFA World Cup)|Hungary defeated El Salvador]] by a score of 10–1, inflicting the heaviest defeat in El Salvador's history as well as the heaviest defeat in FIFA World Cup history.{{sfn|Doyle|2018}} Hungary's 10 goals, which remains the record for the most goals scored by a team in a single match at the FIFA World Cup,{{sfn|Lisi|2007|p=413}} were scored by [[Tibor Nyilasi]] (scored twice), [[Gábor Pölöskei]], [[László Fazekas]] (scored twice), [[József Tóth (footballer, born 1951)|József Tóth]], [[László Kiss (footballer)|László Kiss]] (who scored a [[Hat-trick (association football)|hat-trick]]), and [[Lázár Szentes]]. Meanwhile, [[Luis Ramírez Zapata]] scored El Salvador's lone goal in the 64th minute. His goal remains the only goal ever scored by El Salvador at the FIFA World Cup.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fbref.com/en/matches/80427286/Hungary-El-Salvador-June-15-1982-FIFA-World-Cup|title=Hungary vs. El Salvador Match Report – Tuesday June 15, 1982|language=en|work=[[Sports Reference|FB Reference]]|access-date=22 June 2023}}</ref> According to Ramírez, his teammates told him to not celebrate the goal he scored as they were "afraid that it would make Hungary angry" and result in El Salvador conceding more goals. After the match, three players—Huezo, [[Francisco Jovel (footballer, born 1951)|Francisco Jovel]], and [[Ramón Fagoaga]]—announced that they would determine the team's tactics for its next two matches instead of Rodríguez.{{sfn|Doyle|2018}}

In El Salvador's second match, the team lost by a score of 1–0 to Belgium. [[Ludo Coeck]] scored the match's lone goal in the 19th minute.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fbref.com/en/matches/4ff6936b/Belgium-El-Salvador-June-19-1982-FIFA-World-Cup|title=Belgium vs. El Salvador Match Report – Saturday June 19, 1982|language=en|work=[[Sports Reference|FB Reference]]|access-date=22 June 2023}}</ref> Prior to the match, Belgian manager [[Guy Thys]] described El Salvador's loss to Hungary as "the most shameful" to ever occur at the FIFA World Cup.{{sfn|Doyle|2018}} El Salvador lost their final match to Argentina by a score of 2–0; [[Daniel Passarella]] and [[Daniel Bertoni]] scored Argentina's goals.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fbref.com/en/matches/5e3ad678/Argentina-El-Salvador-June-23-1982-FIFA-World-Cup|title=Argentina vs. El Salvador Match Report – Wednesday June 23, 1982|language=en|work=[[Sports Reference|FB Reference]]|access-date=22 June 2023}}</ref> El Salvador lost all three matches, scored only one goal, and failed to advance to the [[1982 FIFA World Cup knockout stage|knockout stage]].<ref name="1982Squad" />{{sfn|Lisi|2007|pp=385–386}}

{{#invoke:Sports table|main|style=WDL|section=standings
|teamwidth=180

|update=complete
|winpoints=2
|source=<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.fifa.com/worldcup/archive/spain1982/groups/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150203144034/https://www.fifa.com/worldcup/archive/spain1982/groups/index.html |title=1982 FIFA World Cup Spain Groups |language=en |publisher=FIFA |access-date=14 August 2023 |archive-date=3 February 2015}}</ref>

|team1=BEL |team2=ARG |team3=HUN |team4=SLV
|result1=A |result2=A

|win_BEL=2 |draw_BEL=1 |loss_BEL=0 |gf_BEL=3 |ga_BEL=1
|win_ARG=2 |draw_ARG=0 |loss_ARG=1 |gf_ARG=6 |ga_ARG=2
|win_HUN=1 |draw_HUN=1 |loss_HUN=1 |gf_HUN=12 |ga_HUN=6
|win_SLV=0 |draw_SLV=0 |loss_SLV=3 |gf_SLV=1 |ga_SLV=13

|name_BEL={{fb|BEL}}
|name_SLV={{fb|SLV}}
|name_ARG={{fb|ARG}}
|name_HUN={{fb|HUN}}

|res_col_header=Q
|col_A=green1 |text_A=Advance to [[1982 FIFA World Cup#Second group stage|second round]]
}}

== Record at the FIFA World Cup ==

The following table displays [[El Salvador national football team|El Salvador]]'s all-time results for the [[FIFA World Cup]] and [[FIFA World Cup qualification]]. El Salvador is ranked 80th (last place) all-time for its performance at the FIFA World Cup.{{sfn|Stokkermans|2022}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;font-size:90%;"
! colspan="9"  | FIFA World Cup finals record{{sfn|Stokkermans|2022}}
! rowspan="39" |
! colspan="6"  | FIFA World Cup qualification record{{sfn|Courtney|2016}}{{sfn|King|Stokkermans|2018}}{{sfn|Di Maggio|2023}}
|-
! Year
! Host
! Round
! {{tooltip|Pld|Matches played}}
! {{tooltip|W|Matches won}}
! {{tooltip|D*|Matches drawn}}
! {{tooltip|L|Matches lost}}
! {{tooltip|GF|Goals for}}
! {{tooltip|GA|Goals against}}
! {{tooltip|Pld|Matches played}}
! {{tooltip|W|Matches won}}
! {{tooltip|D*|Matches drawn}}
! {{tooltip|L|Matches lost}}
! {{tooltip|GF|Goals for}}
! {{tooltip|GA|Goals against}}
|-
| [[1930 FIFA World Cup|1930]] || align=left | {{flag|Uruguay}} || colspan="7" rowspan="2" | ''Did not enter'' || colspan="6" rowspan="2" | ''Did not enter''
|-
| [[1934 FIFA World Cup|1934]] || align=left | {{flag|Italy|1861}}
|-
| [[1938 FIFA World Cup|1938]] || align=left | {{flag|France|1830}} || colspan="7" rowspan="2" | ''Withdrew'' || colspan="6" rowspan="2" | ''Withdrew''
|-
| [[1950 FIFA World Cup|1950]] || align=left | {{flag|Brazil|1889}}
|-
| [[1954 FIFA World Cup|1954]] || align=left | {{flag|Switzerland}} || colspan="7" rowspan="4" | ''Did not enter'' || colspan="6" rowspan="4" | ''Did not enter''
|-
| [[1958 FIFA World Cup|1958]] || align=left | {{flag|Sweden}}
|-
| [[1962 FIFA World Cup|1962]] || align=left | {{flag|Chile}}
|-
| [[1966 FIFA World Cup|1966]] || align=left | {{flag|England}}
|-
| [[1970 FIFA World Cup|1970]] || align=left | {{flag|Mexico}} || 16th || 3 || 0 || 0 || 3 || 0 || 9 || 10 || 7 || 0 || 3 || 19 || 12
|-
| [[1974 FIFA World Cup|1974]] || align=left | {{flag|West Germany}} || colspan="7" rowspan="2" | ''Did not qualify'' || 2 || 0 || 0 || 2 || 0 || 2
|-
| [[1978 FIFA World Cup|1978]] || align=left | {{flag|Argentina}} || 11 || 4 || 4 || 3 || 18 || 16
|-
| [[1982 FIFA World Cup|1982]] || align=left | {{flag|Spain}} || 24th || 3 || 0 || 0 || 3 || 1 || 13 || 13 || 7 || 4 || 2 || 14 || 6
|-
| [[1986 FIFA World Cup|1986]] || align=left | {{flag|Mexico}} || colspan="7" rowspan="10" | ''Did not qualify'' || 6 || 4 || 1 || 1 || 15 || 2
|-
| [[1990 FIFA World Cup|1990]] || align=left | {{flag|Italy}} || 8 || 2 || 2 || 4 || 8 || 8
|-
| [[1994 FIFA World Cup|1994]] || align=left | {{flag|United States}} || 14 || 8 || 1 || 5 || 28 || 11
|-
| [[1998 FIFA World Cup|1998]] || align=left | {{flag|France|1974}} || 16 || 5 || 5 || 6 || 23 || 22
|-
| [[2002 FIFA World Cup|2002]] || align=left | {{flag|South Korea|1997}}<br />{{flag|Japan}} || 10 || 6 || 1 || 3 || 23 || 15
|-
| [[2006 FIFA World Cup|2006]] || align=left | {{flag|Germany}} || 8 || 2 || 2 || 4 || 6 || 14
|-
| [[2010 FIFA World Cup|2010]] || align=left | {{flag|South Africa}} || 20 || 8 || 3 || 9 || 39 || 21
|-
| [[2014 FIFA World Cup|2014]] || align=left | {{flag|Brazil}} || 12 || 7 || 2 || 3 || 28 || 16
|-
| [[2018 FIFA World Cup|2018]] || align=left | {{flag|Russia}} || 10 || 3 || 3 || 4 || 12 || 16
|-
| [[2022 FIFA World Cup|2022]] || align=left | {{flag|Qatar}} || 20 || 7 || 5 || 8 || 27 || 19
|-
| [[2026 FIFA World Cup|2026]] || align=left | {{flag|Canada}}<br />{{flag|Mexico}}<br />{{flag|United States}} || colspan="8" | ''To be determined'' || colspan="7" | ''To be determined''
|-
| [[2030 FIFA World Cup|2030]] || align=left | {{flag|Morocco}}<br />{{flag|Portugal}}<br />{{flag|Spain}} || colspan="7" | ''To be determined'' || colspan="8" | ''To be determined''
|-
| [[2034 FIFA World Cup|2034]] || align=left | {{flag|Saudi Arabia}} || colspan="7" | ''To be determined'' || colspan="8" | ''To be determined''
|-
! rowspan="4" | Total
! Group stage
! 2/26
! 6
! 0
! 0
! 6
! 1
! 22
! 160
! 70
! 33
! 57
! 260
! 180
|}

:''* Draws include knockout matches decided via [[Penalty shoot-out (association football)|penalty shoot-out]].''

=== By match ===

: ''Scores and results list El Salvador's goal tally first.''
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:left;"
|-
! Year
! Round
! Opponent
! Score
! Venue
! El Salvador scorers
|-
| rowspan="3" align="center" | [[1970 FIFA World Cup|1970]] || rowspan="3" | [[1970 FIFA World Cup Group 1|Group 1]] || {{fb|BEL}} || align="center" bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | [[1970 FIFA World Cup Group 1#Belgium vs El Salvador|0–3]] || [[Estadio Azteca]], [[Mexico City]] || {{N/a}}
|-
| {{fb|MEX}} || align="center" bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | [[1970 FIFA World Cup Group 1#Mexico vs El Salvador|0–4]] || [[Estadio Azteca]], [[Mexico City]] || {{N/a}}
|-
| {{fb|URS}} || align="center" bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | [[1970 FIFA World Cup Group 1#Soviet Union vs El Salvador|0–2]] || [[Estadio Azteca]], [[Mexico City]] || {{N/a}}
|-
| rowspan="3" align="center" | [[1982 FIFA World Cup|1982]] || rowspan="3" | [[1982 FIFA World Cup Group 3|Group 3]] || {{fb|HUN}} || align="center" bgcolor="#ffbbbb" |[[Hungary v El Salvador (1982 FIFA World Cup)|1–10]] || [[Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero|Nuevo Estadio]], [[Elche]] || [[Luis Ramírez Zapata|Ramírez]]
|-
| {{fb|BEL}} || align="center" bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | [[1982 FIFA World Cup Group 3#Belgium vs El Salvador|0–1]] || [[Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero|Nuevo Estadio]], [[Elche]] || {{N/a}}
|-
| {{fb|ARG}} || align="center" bgcolor="#ffbbbb" | [[1982 FIFA World Cup Group 3#Argentina vs El Salvador|0–2]] || [[Estadio José Rico Pérez]], [[Alicante]] || {{N/a}}
|}

=== Record by opponent ===

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align: center;"
|-
! colspan="9" | FIFA World Cup matches (by team)
|-
! Opponent !! Pld !! W !! D !! L !! GF !! GA !! GD !! Confederation
|-
| align="left" | {{fb|ARG}} || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 2 || –2 || [[CONMEBOL]]
|-
| align="left" | {{fb|BEL}} || 2 || 0 || 0 || 2 || 0 || 4 || –4 || [[UEFA]]
|-
| align="left" | {{fb|HUN}} || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 1 || 10 || –9 || [[UEFA]]
|-
| align="left" | {{fb|MEX}} || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 4 || –4 || [[CONCACAF]]
|-
| align="left" | {{fb|URS}} || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 2 || –2 || [[UEFA]]
|}

== Records and statistics ==

=== Most appearances ===

A total of 42 players have been selected to play for El Salvador at the FIFA World Cup, of which, 33 have played in at least one match and 30 of which have started at least one match. A total of 17 players are tied for having the most appearances at the FIFA World Cup (8 from 1970 and 9 from 1980), appearing in three matches each.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:left;"
|-
! Rank
! Player
! Matches
! World Cups
|-
| rowspan="17" align="center" | 1
| [[Ernesto Aparicio]] || align="center" | 3 || 1970
|-
| [[Salvador Flamenco]] || align="center" | 3 || 1970
|-
| [[Raúl Magaña]] || align="center" | 3 || 1970
|-
| [[Salvador Mariona]] || align="center" | 3 || 1970
|-
| [[Saturnino Osorio]] || align="center" | 3 || 1970
|-
| [[Roberto Rivas (footballer)|Roberto Rivas]] || align="center" | 3 || 1970
|-
| [[Pipo Rodríguez]] || align="center" | 3 || 1970
|-
| [[Jorge Vásquez (Salvadoran footballer)|Jorge Vásquez]] || align="center" | 3 || 1970
|-
| [[Mágico González|Jorge González]] || align="center" | 3 || 1982
|-
| [[Luis Guevara Mora]] || align="center" | 3 || 1982
|-
| [[Norberto Huezo]] || align="center" | 3 || 1982
|-
| [[Francisco Jovel (footballer, born 1951)|Francisco Jovel]] || align="center" | 3 || 1982
|-
| [[Luis Ramírez Zapata]] || align="center" | 3 || 1982
|-
| [[Carlos Recinos]] || align="center" | 3 || 1982
|-
| [[José María Rivas]] || align="center" | 3 || 1982
|-
| [[Jaime Rodríguez]] || align="center" | 3 || 1982
|-
| [[Joaquín Ventura]] || align="center" | 3 || 1982
|-
! colspan="4" | {{nobold|Source: <ref name="1970Squad" /><ref name="1982Squad" />}}
|}

=== Top goalscorers ===

In six matches at the FIFA World Cup, El Salvador has only scored a single goal, scored by Zapata against Hungary in 1982.<ref name="1970Squad" /><ref name="1982Squad" />

==See also==
*[[El Salvador at the CONCACAF Gold Cup]]
*[[North, Central American and Caribbean nations at the FIFA World Cup]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== Bibliography ==

* {{cite journal|last1=Cable|first1=Vincent|title=The 'Football War' and the Central American Common Market|language=en|date=October 1969|journal=[[International Affairs (journal)|International Affairs]]|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|volume=45|issue=4|pages=658–671|jstor=2613335}}
* {{cite web|last1=Courtney|first1=Barrie|url=https://www.rsssf.org/tablese/elsal-intres.html|title=El Salvador – List of International Matches|language=en|work=[[RSSSF]]|date=30 June 2016|access-date=22 June 2023}}
* {{cite web|last1=Di Maggio|first1=Roberto|title=World Cup 2022 Qualifying – North and Central America|language=en|url=https://www.rsssf.org/tables/2022q.html#nca|date=5 March 2023|access-date=23 June 2023|work=[[RSSSF]]}}
* {{cite web|last1=Doyle|first1=Paul|url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2014/may/20/25-world-cup-stunning-moments-el-salvador-hungary-spain-1982|title=World Cup Stunning Moments: El Salvador Humiliated in Spain|language=en|date=17 May 2018|access-date=22 June 2023|work=[[The Guardian]]}}
* {{cite book|editor1-last=Haggerty|editor1-first=Richard A.|date=1990|title=El Salvador: A Country Study|language=en|publisher=[[Library of Congress]]|edition=2nd|location=[[Washington, D.C.]], [[United States]]|lccn=89048948|isbn=9780160226083|issn=1057-5294|access-date=22 June 2023|url=https://memory.loc.gov/master/frd/frdcstdy/el/elsalvadorcountr00hagg/elsalvadorcountr00hagg.pdf}}
* {{cite web|last1=King|first1=Ian|last2=Stokkermans|first2=Karel|title=World Cup 2018 Qualifying – North and Central America|language=en|url=https://www.rsssf.org/tables/2018q.html#nca|date=5 July 2018|access-date=23 June 2023|work=[[RSSSF]]}}
* {{cite book|last1=Lisi|first1=Clemente Angelo|title=A History of the World Cup: 1930–2006|language=en|date=2007|publisher=[[Scarecrow Press]]|location=[[Lanham, Maryland]]|isbn=9780810859050|url=https://archive.org/details/historyofworldcu0000lisi/page/114/mode/2up|access-date=22 June 2023|url-access=registration}}
* {{cite web|last1=Luckhurst|first1=Toby|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-48673853|title=Honduras v El Salvador: The Football Match that Kicked Off a War|language=en|date=27 June 2019|access-date=22 June 2023|work=[[BBC]]}}
* {{cite web|last1=Oinam|first1=Jayanta|url=https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/articles/1970-fifa-world-cup-when-el-salvador-made-central-american-history|title=1970 FIFA World Cup: When El Salvador Made Central American History|language=en|date=17 February 2023|access-date=22 June 2023|work=[[FIFA]]}}
* {{cite web|last1=Reyes|first1=Macario|last2=Lugo|first2=Erik Francisco|last3=Mendoza|first3=Eduardo|date=16 February 2023|access-date=22 June 2023|url=https://www.rsssf.org/tablesc/conca81.html|title=VIII. CONCACAF Nations Cup 1981|language=en|work=[[RSSSF]]}}
* {{cite web|last1=Stokkermans|first1=Karel|url=https://www.rsssf.org/tables/3002f.html|title=World Cup Final Tournaments 1930–2022 – Total Rankings|language=en|date=24 December 2022|access-date=23 June 2023|work=[[RSSSF]]}}
* {{cite web|last1=Stokkermans|first1=Karel|last2=Jarreta|first2=Sergio Henrique|url=https://www.rsssf.org/tables/70q.html|title=World Cup 1970 Qualifying|language=en|date=13 November 2006|access-date=22 June 2023|work=[[RSSSF]]}}

== External links ==

* [https://www.fifa.com/fifa-world-ranking/SLV El Salvador at FIFA.com]
* [https://www.fifa.com/tournaments/mens/worldcup FIFA World Cup official website]

{{Portal bar|Association football|El Salvador|Sports}}
{{El Salvador national football team}}
{{Countries at the FIFA World Cup}}

[[Category:El Salvador at the FIFA World Cup| ]]
[[Category:Countries at the FIFA World Cup]]
[[Category:El Salvador national football team|World Cup]]