11 Best Passers in Football History (Ranked)

Summary
Passing has been an important part of the game since Scottish internationals confounded England in the late nineteenth century.
Elite passers have played in a variety of positions and categories all around the world.
Cult legends, Ballon d’Or winners, and World Cup victors have all perfected the skill of passing.
The fixation with passing is not a new phenomena. This curiosity with how players handled a ball and those who excelled in this particular discipline dates back to the first international football match in 1872, more than a century before possession statistics were introduced.

England were held to a surprise goalless draw by their hosts at the West of Scotland Cricket Ground in Partick. While the visitors were bigger, faster, and stronger, Scotland’s ‘pattern-weaving’ technique resulted in a clean sheet. This would be the first domino in a series of tactical concepts that gave rise to tiki-taka and the way most elite teams play today.

Over the next 150 years, the game has been rife with passing maestros. These spiritual successors of the Scottish weavers have arrived in various forms from all over the world, demonstrating the worldwide significance attributed to the most fundamental aspect of any football match: the pass.

Ranking Factors
Assists: The final pass before a goal is the most essential in football.
Influence – The best passers can control their entire team based on how they move the ball around the field.
Accuracy – Pass completion rates taken alone might be quite misleading. This measure is only considered when supplied in the appropriate context.
Longevity – People who have been experts in any field for a long time are always more remarkable.
Level – The ability to stand out among the world’s greatest players is a sign of a legendary individual.
In pictures: The greatest quarterbacks in football history

11Andrea Pirlo

1995–2017

Andrea Pirlo’s entire control over a football was tested at the end of the 2011/12 season. Even after Pirlo hurt his right knee, Antonio Conte couldn’t afford to rest his deep-lying playmaker as his club pushed for a spotless unblemished league season. The intelligent Italian made it onto the pitch, but he was forced to use only his weaker left foot for four games.

Across the golden quartet, Juve scored 10 points, Pirlo completed 87% of his passes, and he created 23 opportunities for his colleagues, four of which they converted. Perhaps the opposition would have had greater success if Pirlo had been barred from utilizing either foot.

Career Details

Notable Clubs

AC Milan, Juventus

Nation

Italy

Games

872

Assists

159

10Toni Kroos

2007–2024

Juan Roman Riquelme, a languid Argentine number ten who could also thump the ball about, was impressed by Toni Kroos. Riquelme dubbed him ‘the Roger Federer of football’ because he liked how the German midfielder let the ball do all the work.

He can go out, play, and return home without having to bathe: he doesn’t sweat, become dirty, or need to throw himself down.

Kroos’ possession assurance was a running joke at the end of a remarkable career that included an unprecedented six Champions League final appearances. After celebrating the 2023/24 La Liga triumph, Carlo Ancelotti feigned irritation when informing a reporter that his teammate had missed one pass in the previous game. “Tomorrow, we train,” the Italian smiled.

Career Details

Notable Clubs

Bayern Munich and Real Madrid

Nation

Germany

Games

868

Assists

187

9Sergio Busquets

2007–Present

During the height of Barcelona’s tiki-taka dominance, the players communicated through their passes, with the direction, spin, and pace of each ball carrying information. Sergio Busquets knew the rhythmic language better than anyone else.

Nobody envisions an athlete as a gangly, one-paced holding midfielder. But few players could manage the ball like Busquets. Former Spain manager Vicente del Bosque is believed to have commented, “You watch the whole game and you don’t see Busquets.” You watch Busquets, you see the entire game.” The mesmeric minimalist who won every major title for club and country was taken from the Spanish third division by Pep Guardiola, the player Busquets most admired as a kid.

Career Details

Notable Clubs

Barcelona

Nation

Spain

Games

952

Assists

66

8Zinedine Zidane

1989–2006

Zinedine Zidane was such a great player that his passing range was obscured by a dizzying array of other abilities. Blessed with probably the best first touch of any footballer ever, the ideal big-game player was characterized by his World Cup and Champions League final goals.

Looking beyond the flash of his brilliance reveals Zidane’s skill of passing. The French master could use the instep and outer edge of both boots, making him virtually four-footed. Perennially surrounded by a fleet of snapping tackles, Zidane had to devise increasingly inventive means to get the ball to his colleagues, who were all too eager to return it to the number 10. “When we don’t know what to do,” Zidane’s France teammate, Bixente Lizarazu, famously said, “we just give the ball to Zizou and he works something out.”

Career Details

Notable Clubs

Juventus and Real Madrid

Nation

France

Games

798

Assists

172

7Mesut Ozil

2005–2023

Mesut Ozil’s unwaveringly sluggish style was so smooth that others mistook it for a lack of effort. A devoted professional who logged more miles than anyone thought, ushering in a new era of modern playmakers. These physically unimposing people could line up wherever along the frontline and prioritized creativity above everything else.

No platform was too large for the former Real Madrid and Arsenal star. Ozil finished the season with the most assists in the World Cup, European Championship, Champions League, Europa League, Bundesliga, La Liga, and Premier League.

While the disappointing end to his Arsenal career marred his stay in north London, Ozil’s excellence in Madrid was highlighted by the anguish that engulfed the locker room upon his departure in 2013. Xabi Alonso praised him as “the perfect player,” but Cristiano Ronaldo expressed concern: “The sale of Ozil is very bad news for me.”

Career Details

Notable Clubs

Werder Bremen, Real Madrid, and Arsenal

Nation

Germany

Games

737

Assists

258

6Michael Laudrup

1981–1998

A “magician,” a “dream,” or simply “the greatest player in history”. Throughout his trophy-laden career, Michael Laudrup received numerous favorable labels. Even the King of Spain once referred to him as the “King of Spain”.

Laudrup’s popularity stems from his unwavering sense of space on the field. The Dane could see even the smallest gap in an opponent’s backline and make passes that few saw and even fewer could execute. If anything, Laudrup seemed overly eager to pick out a pass. Michel Platini famously observed that “Michael had everything except for one thing: he wasn’t selfish enough.”

Career Details

Notable Clubs

Juventus, Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Ajax

Nation

Denmark

Games

671

Assists

73

5Paul Scholes

1993–2013

Few footballers are more admired by their peers than Paul Scholes. Zinedine Zidane, Xavi Hernandez, and Cristiano Ronaldo have all written glowing reviews on the 11-time Premier League champion. Even the Brazilian icon Ronaldinho once said, “I want to pass like him.” “Who taught him to do that?”

Scholes’ intrinsic ball-striking skill was always present, but for the first decade of his career, he focused on shooting over passing. After all, the Old Trafford crowd used to chant, “Paul Scholes scores goals.” As Sir Alex Ferguson expanded his squad with forward-thinking foreign talent, one of the club’s finest academy products improved his game to stay in the first team, going into the center circle and winning the hearts of football fans everywhere.

Career Details

Notable Clubs

Manchester United

Nation

England

Games

779

Assists

95

4Kevin De Bruyne

2008–Present

It’s fitting that Kevin De Bruyne grew up idolizing Michael Owen, arguably the first Premier League player to make the most of his superior physical abilities. De Bruyne may not be as fast as the former England international, but when he gets going, he is a force to be reckoned with. While Owen was attacking defenders who spent most weeknights drinking beer, De Bruyne is harassing players who collaborate with the best sports scientists in the game.

De Bruyne’s style has an angular edge that nearly hides the elegance of his brilliance. The beating heart of Manchester City’s current dominance can play any pass, but few can match his signature delivery: arriving wide on the right, no one on the planet is better at whipping a low ball between the crowd of defenders into his teammate’s instep.

Career Details

Notable Clubs

Chelsea and Manchester City

Nation

Belgium

Games

762

Assists

313

3Xavi Hernandez

1997–2019

Passing is more than simply an important talent for Xavi Hernandez. It is the foundational part of football. “Some teams can’t or don’t pass the ball,” the former Spain and Barcelona midfielder bemoaned. “What are you playing for?” What is the point? That is not football. Combine, pass, and play. That is football – for me, at least.”

Xavi was frequently miscast as a crab footballer who just shuffled the ball sideways, although he concluded his career with over 200 assists for club and country. Having a player as prolific as Lionel Messi on the receiving end of such passes is obviously beneficial, but the Catalan midfielder did far more than just score goals.

Xavi controlled the entire flow of a game, weaving his way through opponents while also collaborating with teammates to keep everyone engaged. “Sometimes,” Xavi told the newspaper, “I even think to myself: man, so-and-so is going to get annoyed because I’ve played three passes and haven’t given him the ball yet.”

Career Details

Notable Clubs

Barcelona

Nation

Spain

Games

1,062

Assists

241

2Pele

1956–1977

Pele is deservedly regarded as one of the best goal scorers in history. By his own rather contentious calculation, the three-time World Cup winner scored over 1,000 goals for Santos and Brazil before retiring early in New York. Nonetheless, Pele thinks that finishing was not his strongest strength.

Although many remember me for my goals, I frequently assisted others in scoring. I have many more assistants.

Pele, who played immediately behind his team’s centre striker, was a master of waiting for space to open in front of him, a technique known in Argentina as ‘la Pausa’ – the pause. The most famous example of Pele’s deliberate nonchalance occurred during the 1970 World Cup final, when he span, halted, and caressed the ball into the path of an onrushing Carlos Alberto. That was the Brazilian’s sixth assist in the competition, and no player has ever had more in a single summer afterward.

Career Details

Notable Clubs

Santos

Nation

Brazil

Games

1,366

Assists

N/A

1Lionel Messi

2003–Present