Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney is no longer England’s record goalscorer after he was overtaken by Harry Kane.
But there are 11 former Manchester United players who hold their respective national team goalscoring records around the world.
As we get into the international football spirit ahead of the 2026 World Cup, here is a look at the former Manchester United players who sit proudly at the top of their countries’ goalscoring charts.
Cristiano Ronaldo: Portugal
There is only one place to start, with the all-time international record goalscorer, Cristiano Ronaldo.
Ronaldo actually became Portugal’s top goalscorer back in 2014 when he overtook Pauleta’s record of 47 goals.
He broke Ali Daei’s all-time men’s international world record in 2021, and he has simply not stopped scoring since. Heading into the 2026 tournament, his jaw-dropping tally stands at 143 goals in a record-breaking 226 caps for his country.
Romelu Lukaku: Belgium
Romelu Lukaku is Belgium’s all-time record goalscorer with 89 international goals. The previous long-standing Belgian record was a modest 30 goals, a benchmark held by Bernard Voorhoof and Paul Van Himst, which Lukaku shattered back in late 2017 when he was just 24 years old.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic: Sweden
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is Sweden’s highest ever goalscorer with 62 goals. He broke the previous record of 49 in spectacular fashion during a 2014 friendly against Estonia, back-heeling his milestone 50th international goal to dismantle an 82-year-old record that had stood since 1932.
Javier Hernandez: Mexico
‘The Little Pea’, Javier Hernandez is Mexico’s record scorer with 52 international goals. He broke Jared Borgetti’s record of 46 in 2017, scoring a classic header against Croatia.
Dimitar Berbatov: Bulgaria
Dimitar Berbatov is Bulgaria’s record goalscorer with 48 goals. In 2009, the Manchester United forward netted a brace against Malta to break the previous record of 47, which was originally set by Hristo Bonev all the way back in 1979. He retired from international duty just a few months later.
Alexis Sanchez: Chile
Alexis Sanchez’s spell at Manchester United did not work out well, but his international career was fantastic.
Sanchez scored 51 goals for Chile, famously breaking Marcelo Salas’ record of 37 during a 2017 Confederations Cup clash against Germany.
Radamel Falcao: Colombia
Radamel Falcao became Colombia’s greatest-ever goalscorer in June 2017. He broke a 24-year-old national record previously held by Arnoldo Iguaran when he powered home a trademark header against Spain, eventually ending up with 36 total goals for his country.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan: Armenia
Henrikh Mkhitaryan is the all-time Armenia record goalscorer. He broke the record in 2013 and by the time he retired from international football in 2022, he had reached a final tally of 32 goals.
Denis Law: Scotland
Manchester United legend Denis Law became Scotland’s all-time record goalscorer in 1973 and ended his international career with 30 goals.
Law’s tally was later matched by Kenny Dalglish, and the pair share the title of joint-record scorers.
It is worth noting that Law scored his 30 goals in 55 games, while Dalglish took 102 matches to match him.
David Healy: Northern Ireland
Former United academy talent David Healy is the Northern Ireland record scorer with 36 goals. He broke the previous record in 2004.
Healy played only three times for Manchester United’s first team before leaving to play his club football elsewhere.
Memphis Depay: Netherlands
Memphis Depay became the all-time Netherlands international record scorer in 2025. He currently has 55 goals for his country.
The record was previously held by another former Manchester United player, Robin van Persie with 50 goals.
Interestingly, Ruud van Nistelrooy has never held the record. He scored 35 goals for the Netherlands in 70 games.
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