Which goalkeepers have scored the most goals over their careers - and what are their stories?
A goalkeeper goal is like a rare but rough diamond. Incredible to see, precious to hold, but often a bit messy around the edges. From last-ditch headers in the 95th minute to thunderous free kicks from 30 yards, a goalkeeper finding the net is one of football's most delirious moments.
For most, it happens once in a career, if at all. But a very small group of shot-stoppers made a habit of it. These are the highest goalscoring goalkeepers of all time.
*Some goal values are listed differently on different websites, but the goal values are consistent within a small differential range and do not alter the order of the list.
5th - René Higuita - 41 goals
The third-highest scoring goalkeeper in history also happened to invent what is now known as the ‘scorpion kick’, helped change the back-pass law, and spent seven months in prison after reportedly acting as a go-between in a Pablo Escobar-linked kidnapping. Life was never dull for El Loco.
René Higuita scored 41 career goals across 24 years of professional football, mainly for Atlético Nacional in his native Colombia. Greater than scoring goalkeeper statistic, though, Higuita's legacy comes from what he represented: the goalkeeper as a maverick. He dribbled past forwards in open play. He took set-pieces. He helped Colombia reach the 1990 World Cup round of 16, and then famously lost possession to Roger Milla after wandering out of his area, sending Colombia home.
His scorpion kick, performed against England at Wembley on 6 September 1995, remains one of the most iconic moments in goalkeeper history. A save that was entirely unnecessary, technically brilliant, and completely on-brand for the man who was, in his manager Francisco Maturana's words, effectively ‘an 11th outfield player.’
4th - Dimitar Ivankov - 42 goals
In a near-400 game career, Bulgarian goalkeeper Dimitar Ivankov became one of the highest goalscoring goalkeepers ever with just over 40 goals. In the process, he became - by far - the highest European scoring goalkeeper of all time. He started for the Bulgarian National Team between 2004 and 2010, and also won the Turkish Süper Lig with Bursaspor in 2010.
3rd - Johnny Vegas Fernandez - 45 goals
There isn’t a lot of information available about the career of Peruvian goalkeeper Johnny Vegas - perhaps unflattering given his unbelievable goalscoring record in Peru’s professional leagues. However, he does have an up to date Instagram presence, which shows that he now runs his own goalkeeper school called KeepZone.
On the account, there is one rather entertaining promotional clip where he introduces himself by saying ‘Hello, you know who I am, Johnny Vegas, goalkeeper and goalscoring…with 45 goals’. So, if nothing else, the man himself should know the number that brings him in at third on our list of highest scoring goalkeepers.
2nd - José Luis Chilavert - 67 goals
The Paraguayan goalkeeper - nicknamed El Buldog for his combative personality - scored 67 professional goals across his club career and eight for Paraguay internationally, a national record for a goalkeeper. He was a free kick specialist and a penalty taker of the highest order, and his record brought him three IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper awards (1995, 1997, and 1998).
But his most astonishing achievement came on 28 November 1999, playing for Vélez Sársfield against Ferro Carril Oeste. Chilavert scored three penalties in a 6-1 win. In doing so he became the first, and so far only, goalkeeper in football history to score a hat-trick in a professional match.
He also became the first goalkeeper ever to take a direct free kick in a World Cup finals match, during France '98. He nearly scored against Spain at the 2002 World Cup, too. El Buldog never stopped trying.
1st - Rogério Ceni - 129 goals
Nobody comes close to Rogério Ceni. Nobody is even in the same conversation.
Ceni spent 25 years at São Paulo, making 1,238 appearances for the club and retired in 2015 as the Guinness World Record holder for most goals scored by a goalkeeper with 129 official goals. This was recognised by the IFFHS, comprising 70 penalties, 61 free kicks, and one from open play.
Ceni was no novelty act. He was São Paulo's captain, their set-piece specialist, and one of the most decorated Brazilian club players of his era, winning the Copa Libertadores, the FIFA Club World Cup, and three consecutive Brazilian league titles. In the 2005 edition of the Club World Cup, he scored in the semi-final against Ittihad and was voted Man of the Match against Liverpool in the final.
Some sources cite his total as 131 or 132 when including goals in competitions not tracked by the IFFHS. Whatever the precise figure, the gap between Ceni and the rest is enormous. He is, undisputedly, the greatest goalscoring goalkeeper who ever lived.
Honourable mentions
Hans-Jörg Butt - 37 goals
German goalkeeper Butt was a recognised Bundesliga penalty-taker who scored 26 career goals - including a penalty against Liverpool for Bayer Leverkusen in the 2000/01 Champions League. Butt is undoubtedly worth highlighting due to the level of the game that his goals were scored at. Germany’s highest division and the Champions League? A goalkeeper goal is always a sight to behold, and despite most of them being penalties, it’s a different calibre to be score at the highest level as a goalkeeper.
Butt was Germany's third choice shot-stopper at both the UEFA Euro 2000 and the 2002 FIFA World Cup tournaments, remaining an unused substitute in both. The maverick penalty mastermind made his only competitive international appearance on 10th July 2010 in Germany’s 3-2 win against Uruguay in the tournament's third-place playoff. No goal scored, however.
Jorge Campos - between 35 and 46 goals
Most of the highest scoring goalkeepers of all time converted mainly from set pieces. Jorge Campos scored them as a striker - because for stretches of his career, that's basically what he was. Campos doesn’t make our official ranking as the number of goals he scored is difficult to pinpoint, but he deserves an honourable mention for the maverick legacy he left behind.
When Campos joined UNAM in 1988, the first-choice goalkeeper spot was already taken. Rather than sit on the bench, he asked to play up front. In his debut season he scored 14 goals and came close to finishing as the league's top scorer. By the time he claimed the number one shirt the following season, he'd already established himself as one of the most complete - and most completely unique - footballers in Mexico.
Throughout his career Campos would regularly be sent forward when his team needed a goal, with a substitute goalkeeper sometimes coming on to cover. His most famous outfield moment came with Atlante against Cruz Azul. He started in goal, moved further up the pitch later in the game, and swept home a bicycle kick to equalise. In total he scored 35 career goals across his time in Liga MX and MLS, making him the highest-scoring Mexican goalkeeper in history.
And then there were the kits. Self-designed, wildly patterned, and inspired by the folk art of his native Acapulco, Campos' jerseys were so iconic that Nike signed him as a global ambassador alongside Ronaldo, Cantona, and Figo. He was, in every sense, in a category of his own.
All goal tallies sourced from Transfermarkt, IFFHS, Guinness World Records, and Wikipedia. Statistics as of April 2026.
