Highest Scoring Soccer Games In History
Soccer can be an incredibly agonizing sport for any fan. Defeat is tough, losing to a local rival is even tougher, suffering a loss to them on home turf is worse, and being completely outclassed by your fiercest opponents—whether at the club or international level—is arguably the most excruciating. But then comes absolute humiliation! Let’s explore some of the highest-scoring soccer matches in history.
7. Top 7 Highest Scoring Soccer Games
Preston North End is a club rich in history. As a founding member of the English Football League in 1888, they achieved an incredible feat by winning both the League Championship and the FA Cup in the inaugural season, becoming the first English club to complete the ‘double.’ Their success was even more remarkable, as they went unbeaten in the League and won the FA Cup without conceding a single goal. They were truly a formidable team. For fans looking to add excitement to their love for football, platforms like king hills casino offer a range of betting opportunities to enhance the game-day experience.
However, the scoreline above warrants some explanation, as it saw Preston North End set three English soccer records in the process:
- Most goals scored in a single game.
- Largest home winning margin.
- Highest aggregate score.
Remarkably, all of these records still stand today.
A notable fact, however, is that this entry into the record books actually took place a year before the Football League was founded!
The reason for such a high score: they were simply too dominant!
6. Villareal 27 – Navata 0 – 2009
This high-scoring soccer match is particularly intriguing as it took place fairly recently. However, it’s important to note that it occurred in a friendly, with a well-known La Liga team (Villarreal) facing what was essentially an amateur or semi-professional side competing in the ‘Third Territory’ league of Catalonia—a league that few have even heard of! My apologies to any Basque soccer fans out there!
Reason for such a high score: it was simply a massive mismatch. Professionals versus amateurs, with Villarreal finishing fifth in La Liga that season, narrowly missing out on a Champions League spot on the final day. Meanwhile, there is no available record of where Navata placed in their respective league that year.
5. Tahiti 30 – Cook Islands 0 – 1971
Unfortunately, there is little recorded information about this match. However, it is officially recognized as one of the highest-scoring soccer games in history, having taken place during the 1971 South Pacific Games. For authenticity, the results are officially attributed and recorded at the following link.
4. Australia 31 – American Samoa 0 – 2001
While some of the highest scores in soccer history have questionable origins, this particular result is well known in the world of soccer as it took place during an official FIFA World Cup qualification match.
In fact, its notoriety sets it apart from other high-scoring games, as footage of it is actually available to watch on YouTube.
Reason for such a high score: FIFA’s World Cup qualification system at the time was unbalanced, with small teams from the Oceanic Football Confederation (OFC) facing much stronger nations. This issue has since been addressed, and it is one of the reasons why Australia now competes in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
A match report and the records it set are available from the BBC here.
Two remarkable results from Scotland occurred on the same day—September 12, 1885.
3. Dundee Harp 35 – Aberdeen Rovers 0 – 1885
Founded in 1879, the now-defunct Dundee Harp was a soccer club based in Dundee, Scotland, which ceased operations in 1894. Its most notable victory during its brief existence came against Aberdeen Rovers on September 12, 1885. However, much to Dundee Harp’s frustration, an even higher-scoring match took place on the very same day.
2. Arbroath 36 – Bon Accord Rovers 0 – 1885
Arbroath Football Club, founded in 1878, is a Scottish team based in the town of Arbroath. They currently compete in the Scottish Championship, playing their home matches at Gayfield Park. Known as the ‘Red Lichties,’ their most famous achievement is holding the world record for the largest victory in senior soccer history. This record was set on September 12, 1885, when they defeated Bon Accord 36–0 in a Scottish Cup match. The game was remarkable for several reasons, including:
- A further five to seven goals were disallowed for offside, so the score could have been much higher!
- Jocky Petrie scored 13 goals in the match, a record for the most goals scored by a single player in a British Senior Soccer game.
What makes these two games particularly interesting is the following:
Dundee Harp could have actually held the world record for the largest margin of victory in soccer history. According to Fraser Clyne, the Arbroath FC historian who researched both matches…
“…the referee (in the Dundee Harp game) had recorded 37 goals scored. However, Harp’s secretary insisted that the correct tally was two goals fewer. The referee admitted having trouble keeping track of the relentless scoring and ultimately agreed to Harp’s lower total.”
The highest-scoring soccer game in history—without exception!
Among all the matches listed, none can compare to the game that will forever be remembered as the most staggering and infamous result in soccer history. No other score even comes close to the sheer magnitude of this record-breaking victory—though it remains shrouded in controversy!
1. A.S Adema 149 – Stade Olympique L’Emyrne 0 – 2002
- The biggest margin of victory and the highest-scoring soccer game.
- The infamous record for the most own goals scored in a game.
- It holds the record because both happened in the same match!
Additionally, the final result was cemented by a classic act of petulant soccer protest.
Words cannot fully capture the history and intrigue of this extraordinary match, so take a few minutes to watch the following YouTube video.
This video will provide you with all the knowledge and trivia you need about the biggest—yet perhaps least famous—high-scoring game of all time!
