Who is the oldest player to have participated in the Euro Cup?

The Eurocup is the continent’s international tournament par excellence, where some of the best players compete to be named the best in the region.

The European Championship has also been the stage in which veterans have left their mark with their countries towards the end of their careers.

Here are the oldest players who have participated in the Euro Cup.

Gabor Kiraly

Age: 40 years and 86 days
Kiraly, commonly known as “the man in the pajamas”, is the only 40-year-old player to have participated in a European Championship. The former Cyrstal Palace goalkeeper helped lowly Hungary reach the round of 16 in the 2016 tournament, where they lost 4-0 to Belgium.

His quirky but solid choice of pants endeared him to football hipsters around the world, but it’s the record for oldest European player that secures Kiraly’s place in the history books.

Lothar Matthaus

Age: 39 years and 92 days
In 2000, Matthäus entered the history of the German national team in an unfortunate way, losing 3-0 against Portugal. That match was the 150th and last of the Bayern and Germany legend with his national team, after a long international career.

He captained West Germany to their 1990 World Cup triumph, and was subsequently awarded the Ballon d’Or and named the first FIFA World Player of the Year. However, Euro 2000 was disastrous for him and for Germany, which finished fourth in the group stage, behind
Portugal, Romania and England.

Morten Olsen

Age: 38 years and 308 days
Danish football owes a great debt to Olsen for his magnificent services as a player and as a coach. He coached De Rod-Hvide for 15 years following his retirement as a player, which ended shortly after his last participation in Euro 1988.

The impressive 1986 World Cup raised high hopes, but the Danes bowed out early with defeats to Spain, West Germany and Italy.

Lee Casciaro

Age: 41 years and 176 days
The dreams of a man from a club that breaks an international record. Lincoln Red Imps legend Casciaro was a substitute for Gibraltar in the 3-0 defeat to Greece in March 2023, going down in history as the oldest player in European Championship qualifying.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Age: 41 years and 172 days
On the same night that Casciaro broke his record, Zlatan Ibrahimovic became the second oldest player to participate in a European Championship qualifying match. Like Casciaro, Ibrahimovic, 41, came into play as a substitute.

Dino Zoff

Age: 41 years and 90 days
Casciaro has surpassed the record of legendary goalkeeper Dino Zoff, who was 41 years and 90 days old when he made his debut for Italy.

The record set by the beloved Italian had stood for 40 years, with the record appearance coming in a 1983 match.

The five oldest players in the history of the European Championship qualifying phase

Ivica Vastic

Age: 38 years and 257 days
Ivica Vastic, another man who came off the bench to make history, converted his 14th and last international goal into a record.

In his 50th appearance for Austria, he scored his team’s first goal in the European Championship and became the competition’s oldest goalscorer with a last-gasp penalty against Poland in 2008.

Goran Pandev

Age: 37 years and 322 days
Pandev scored in the last Euro Cup and became the second oldest scorer in the history of the competition.

North Macedonia’s talismanic striker has enjoyed a successful career, winning the UEFA Champions League with Inter in 2010.

Zoltan Gera

Age: 37 years and 62 days. At Euro 2016, Zoltan Gera received the Goal of the Tournament award thanks to a wonderful goal against eventual champions Portugal.

That goal made him the oldest scorer in the history of the Euro Cup, in which Hungary was first in a group that also included Portugal, the eventual champion, and Iceland, the great revelation, before being defeated by Belgium. in the round of 16.

The five oldest scorers in the history of the Euro Cup