Lev Yashin is the usual answer, and the case is strong: he is the only goalkeeper on UEFA's list of Ballon d'Or winners, and FIFA credits him with more than 150 penalty saves. Dino Zoff, Gordon Banks, Gianluigi Buffon and Oliver Kahn round out our top five.
Below is the full top 10, then four honorable mentions, the Americans who belong in the conversation, and a table comparing four modern legends at the World Cups where they won the Golden Glove. Career totals are written as "more than" so they stay true, and every figure links to FIFA, UEFA, a league, a federation or the player's club. This is our editorial ranking; none of these players is connected to Open Goaaal.
10 Best Soccer Goalies of All Time
We ranked on what each keeper won, what they did in the biggest games and whether they changed how the position is played. Longevity counts too (two of the top four were still playing at 40 or older).
1. Lev Yashin (Soviet Union): why is the "Black Spider" still No. 1?
He won the award no goalkeeper has won since. UEFA's list of Ballon d'Or laureates (UEFA, updated Oct. 2025) shows him as the 1963 winner, with Dynamo Moscow, and every other name on that list is an outfield player.
FIFA's profile, The impregnable Spider (FIFA, Jan. 2026), says he kept around 275 clean sheets and saved more than 150 penalties for Dynamo and the national team, a world record. The Soviet Union won Olympic gold in Melbourne in 1956 and the first European Championship in 1960 with him in goal. He retired in 1970 with more than 70 caps and 20 years at one club. FIFA calls him a forefather of today's sweeper-keepers. The World Cup's best-goalkeeper award was even called the Yashin Award before it became the Golden Glove.
2. Dino Zoff (Italy): how did he win a World Cup at 40?
He kept going long after most keepers stop. FIFA's tribute on his 80th birthday, Dino Zoff: an icon turns 80 (FIFA, Feb. 2022), calls him the oldest World Cup winner in history: he was 40 when he captained Italy to the 1982 title.
The same piece lists the numbers behind the reputation. He went more than 1,100 minutes unbeaten for Italy between 1972 and 1974, a record at the time, and retired with more than 110 caps. He made more than 550 Serie A appearances, won six league titles with Juventus after joining them at 30, and is the only Italian to win both the World Cup and the European Championship.
3. Gordon Banks (England): what was the "save of the century"?
A dive to keep out a Pelé header at the 1970 World Cup in Mexico. FIFA's obituary, England hero Banks dies aged 81 (FIFA, Feb. 2019), names that stop as the moment he is remembered for, and it is usually the first clip anyone shows of him.
The save tends to hide how good the rest of his career was. At the 1966 World Cup he went more than 400 minutes without conceding before Eusébio scored a penalty in the semifinal, and England went on to win the final 4-2. FIFA adds that he won the League Cup with both Leicester City and Stoke City and that a goalkeeping statistics body later ranked him second only to Yashin among 20th-century keepers. The FA's tribute (Feb. 2019) puts his England total at more than 70 caps.
4. Gianluigi Buffon (Italy): what made "Gigi" last so long?
Close to three decades at the top level. The Italian federation's farewell note, FIGC, Aug. 2023, credits him with more than 175 caps, still Italy's record, and five World Cup tournaments. At the 2006 World Cup he conceded only twice, an own goal and a Zinedine Zidane penalty, and Italy won it.
UEFA's retirement piece (Aug. 2024) fills in the club side. When Juventus were relegated to Serie B in the summer of 2006, the reigning world champion stayed and helped them straight back up. He retired in August 2023, at 45.
5. Oliver Kahn (Germany): why did "Der Titan" win the Golden Ball?
Germany barely conceded at the 2002 World Cup, and Kahn was the reason. FIFA's look back, Kahn's summer of saves (FIFA, Dec. 2024), says he let in one goal in more than 600 minutes before the final, and that he remained the only goalkeeper to win the Golden Ball for the tournament's best player. American fans may remember him keeping out Landon Donovan more than once in the quarterfinal against the USA.
The final against Brazil went the other way, with a spilled Rivaldo shot falling to Ronaldo. A year earlier he had won the Champions League with Bayern Munich, saving penalties from Zlatko Zahovic, Amedeo Carboni and Mauricio Pellegrino in the shootout against Valencia, per UEFA's Team of 2001 (Dec. 2001).
6. Peter Schmeichel (Denmark): how good was "The Great Dane"?
Good enough to be the only keeper ever named Premier League Player of the Season, in 1995/96. His Premier League Hall of Fame profile (March 2022) lists five league titles, more than 300 Premier League appearances and more than 125 clean sheets. He was also the first goalkeeper to reach 100 in the competition.
His last game for Manchester United was the 1999 Champions League final, which UEFA calls his swansong. Seven years earlier he had won EURO '92 with a Denmark team that only entered the tournament as a late replacement. UEFA's EURO '92 spotlight picks out his shootout save from Marco van Basten in the semifinal and a fingertip stop from Jürgen Klinsmann in the final, which he rates as the best save he ever made.
7. Iker Casillas (Spain): what did he win?
Pretty much everything. FIFA's retirement article, Casillas hangs up his gloves (FIFA, Aug. 2020), lists the 2010 World Cup as captain, the Golden Glove at that tournament, EURO 2008 and EURO 2012, and three Champions League titles with Real Madrid.
He played at four World Cups and won the U-20 World Cup in 1999. All three of Spain's straight major titles, from 2008 to 2012, came with him in goal.
8. Edwin van der Sar (Netherlands): what record does he still hold?
Fourteen Premier League clean sheets in a row, from November 2008 to February 2009. The Premier League's records page still lists it as the longest run of matches without conceding. His Hall of Fame nominee profile (Sept. 2025) adds four league titles, the last of them won at 40.
His best-known moment came in the 2008 Champions League final. Against Chelsea, after a 1-1 draw, he kept out Nicolas Anelka's kick to win the shootout 6-5, as UEFA reported the next day (May 2008).
9. Manuel Neuer (Germany): what is a sweeper-keeper?
A goalkeeper who covers the space behind his defense with his feet as well as his hands, and Neuer is the one most fans picture. FIFA's career recap, Captain Neuer signs new Bayern extension (FIFA, Feb. 2025), points to his display against Algeria at the 2014 World Cup, where Germany won the title and he won the Golden Glove.
The same article lists two Champions League titles with Bayern Munich, in 2013 and 2020, The Best FIFA Men's Goalkeeper award in 2020 and more than 500 Bundesliga appearances, which only three keepers had reached before him. He also broke his leg skiing in late 2022 and was back in the Bayern goal a year later. If you coach youth soccer, his style is the reason your keeper is now expected to play out from the back; our guide to the sweeper in soccer explains the outfield role it borrows from.
10. René Higuita (Colombia): why is a maverick on this list?
He treated the penalty area as somewhere to start attacks from, years before that was normal. FIFA's anniversary piece, Colombia's scorpion king, 25 years on (FIFA, Sept. 2020), describes the September 1995 friendly at Wembley, a 0-0 draw with England, where he cleared a shot by throwing himself forward and flicking the ball away with his heels. England coach Terry Venables said he had never seen anything like it.
The same article calls "El Loco" a pioneer of dribbling and playing out from the back, and a goalkeeper who scored regularly. Plenty of his gambles went wrong, and the next generation copied the good ones.
11. Honorable Mentions
Four more keepers could swap places with anyone in the bottom half of the top 10.
Which other goalkeepers nearly made the list?
- Sepp Maier (Germany). The "Cat from Anzing" won three straight European Cups with Bayern Munich (1974, 1975, 1976), the 1974 World Cup and EURO 1972, and played more than 440 Bundesliga games in a row, per Bundesliga.com (Feb. 2024).
- Petr Čech (Czech Republic). More than 200 Premier League clean sheets for Chelsea and Arsenal, the competition's record, plus the single-season record of 24, on the Premier League records page.
- Ricardo Zamora (Spain). He debuted for Espanyol at 15 in 1916 and later played for Barcelona and Real Madrid. LaLiga's award for the keeper who concedes the fewest goals each season is named after him, per LaLiga (April 2016).
- Alisson Becker (Brazil). Since joining Liverpool from Roma in 2018 he has won the 2019 Champions League and the Premier League in 2019/20 and 2024/25. He is also the only Liverpool goalkeeper to score for the club, a headed winner at West Brom in 2021, per Liverpool FC.
Which American goalkeepers belong in the conversation?
Four Americans stand out. None of them would push Yashin or Zoff aside, but each holds a mark the legends above don't.
Tim Howard made 16 saves against Belgium in the 2014 World Cup round of 16, a single-game record he now shares with Curaçao's Eloy Room, according to FIFA (July 2026). Brad Friedel holds the Premier League record for consecutive appearances by any player, 310 straight games between 2004 and 2012, per the league's records page, and the Premier League (May 2020) credits him with 450 appearances, the most by an American. (For the wider story, see our history of soccer in the USA.)
The women's side is just as strong (our list of the best female soccer players of all time includes one of them). Hope Solo finished with more than 200 caps, more than 100 shutouts, the 2015 World Cup, two Olympic golds and two World Cup Golden Gloves, per U.S. Soccer (Jan. 2018). Alyssa Naeher retired from the national team with more than 110 caps and is the only goalkeeper in women's soccer to keep a shutout in both a World Cup final (2019) and an Olympic gold medal game (2024), per U.S. Soccer (Nov. 2024).
How has the goalkeeper's role changed?
It has moved from shot-stopper to first passer. Yashin was already coming off his line in the 1960s, Higuita dribbled out of his box in the 1990s, and by Neuer's peak a keeper was expected to start attacks.
The rules pushed it along. Under IFAB Law 12, a goalkeeper who handles a ball deliberately kicked to them by a teammate, or thrown directly to them from a teammate's throw-in, concedes an indirect free kick, and they can't hold the ball for more than eight seconds. Keepers who can't play with their feet get found out quickly. For a young keeper, that means footwork and passing now sit next to diving and handling in every session; our goalie drills cover both.
How do the modern legends compare at a World Cup?
Buffon's 2006 tournament is the stingiest of the four. We pulled each keeper's numbers from FIFA's Golden Glove winners page (June 2026) and worked out the last column ourselves, so you can compare the World Cups where four of our top 10 won the award.
| Keeper | World Cup | Games | Clean sheets | Goals conceded | Minutes per goal conceded | Team finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oliver Kahn | 2002 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 210 | Runner-up |
| Gianluigi Buffon | 2006 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 345 | Champion |
| Iker Casillas | 2010 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 330 | Champion |
| Manuel Neuer | 2014 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 172.5 | Champion |
Kahn is the odd one out. He conceded three goals, two of them in the final, and still won the Golden Glove and the Golden Ball for a team that lost. Neuer let in more than anyone here, yet his tournament is the one coaches still show for how far off his line he played. Clean sheets alone don't settle a ranking like this one.
FAQs
Who is considered the greatest goalkeeper of all time?
Lev Yashin, in most rankings. He is the only goalkeeper on UEFA's list of Ballon d'Or winners (1963), and FIFA credits him with more than 150 penalty saves.
Who is the best goalkeeper in the world right now?
There's no single answer, but one recent marker is the World Cup Golden Glove. FIFA lists Spain's Unai Simón as the 2026 winner, after he conceded one goal in eight games as Spain won the tournament.
What is the most iconic save in soccer history?
Gordon Banks keeping out Pelé's header at the 1970 World Cup is the usual pick. René Higuita's scorpion kick at Wembley in 1995 is the most famous piece of showmanship, though it came in a friendly.
Are there female goalkeepers in the discussion of the all-time best?
Yes. Hope Solo won two Olympic golds and the 2015 World Cup, and Alyssa Naeher is the only keeper in women's soccer with shutouts in both a World Cup final and an Olympic gold medal game.
Do goalkeepers decide penalty shootouts?
They often do. Kahn saved three in the 2001 Champions League final shootout, and van der Sar's save from Anelka won the 2008 final for Manchester United.
So who is the best soccer goalie of all time?
Yashin, by the evidence: an award no other keeper has won, a penalty record nobody has matched and a style that was decades early. Pick Buffon for longevity, Kahn for one tournament or Neuer for how he changed the job and you'd have a fair case for each.
If there's a young keeper in your house, the backyard is where the reps happen. The Open Goaaal® 3-in-1 Soccer Goal Trainer combines a goal, a rebounder and a backstop, so the ball comes back to a shooter and the keeper gets the next shot sooner. For more reading, see famous soccer player numbers and what a cap is in soccer, the unit behind most of the totals on this page.
