THE "50" MILESTONE

• Oct 19, 2025
• History Statistics

Picture : Vivian John Woodward is the record holder (1909) and Erling Haaland is the first in the XXI Century.

Players with fewest games to reach 50 goals for NT

We've already noted Erling Haaland's recent remarkable achievement, reaching 50 international goals earlier than any other European player (in terms of age) except Sándor Kocsis.
Now let's look at his feat from a slightly different perspective—how many games it took to reach this milestone. 
Haaland reached it in 46 games. To appreciate the enormity of the event, take a look at the table. Among players of this century, the closest to "Cyborg" is Stern John, who scored 50 goals in 65 games for the Trinidad and Tobago national team. 
Among Europeans, it's Harry Kane, who took 71 games for England.
In the old days, when football was more attacking, there were 6 players who scored 50 goals in fewer games than Haaland. Most recent among them, Kunishige Kamamoto and Gerd Müller, did it in 1972, in 37 and 41 games, respectively.
Somewhat oddly, the rankings do not include two all-time top national team scorers. Lionel Messi scored his 50th goal only in his 107th game for Argentina, while Cristiano Ronaldo did it in his 114th for Portugal.