We look at the players who have managed the most assists at individual editions of the men’s World Cup.
Most Assists at a World Cup
6 – Pelé (Brazil), 1970 World Cup5 – Robert Gadocha (Poland), 1974 World Cup5 – Pierre Littbarski (West Germany), 1982 World Cup5 – Diego Maradona (Argentina), 1986 World Cup5 – Thomas Häßler (Germany), 1994 World Cup5 – Michael Olise (France), 2026 World Cup
*Based on recorded history, since 1966.
Pelé – 6 (1970 World Cup)
The 1970 World Cup produced what many have come to see as the best team in the tournament’s history, and Pelé was the jewel in the crown.
Brazil won the World Cup for the third time in 1970, earning them the right to keep the Jules Rimet trophy permanently.
Pelé was crucial both as a finisher and a creator.
Only three players scored more than his four, but no one matched his six assists. It’s the most assists by a player at a single men’s World Cup on record (since 1966).
He’s one of just eight players in men’s World Cup history to reach double figures for goal involvements in a single tournament, and three of them came in final, a 4-1 win over Italy.
On that occasion, he scored once and set up two other goals. While ‘assists’ may not have been much of a celebrated contribution back then, Pelé was setting a new record that – 56 years on – still belongs to him.
Robert Gadocha – 5 (1974 World Cup)
While the extent of Robert Gadocha’s exploits may not have been quite as appreciated back then as it would today, the 1974 World Cup was a momentous tournament for Poland nonetheless.
They finished third, had Grzegorz Lato finish as top scorer, and Wladyslaw Zmuda won the FIFA Young Player Award.
And we can add Gadocha’s achievement to that list, with his five assists being more than anyone else at the 1974 World Cup.
There’s quite a significant caveat here, though.
Four of Gadocha’s assists in 1974 came in one match – the 7-0 thrashing of Haiti in the group stage.
But while that might lessen the achievement in the eyes of some, it’s also worth noting that he’s the only player on record (since 1966) to get four assists in a single men’s World Cup match.
Pierre Littbarski – 5 (1982 World Cup)
There aren’t many Germans who’ve had better World Cup records than Pierre Littbarski, who was a runner-up with West Germany in 1982 and 1986, before also winning it in 1990.
On an individual level, though, there’s a reasonable case that 1982 was his best tournament.
Twenty-two years old at the time, Littbarski tallied four assists across the two group stages and added a fifth against France in their semi-final, a 3-3 draw that they ultimately progressed from thanks to success in the first penalty shootout in World Cup history.
Littbarski may have appeared at two other World Cups, but he’d only add another couple of assists.
His total of seven World Cup assists has only been bettered by Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi (both 8 ahead of 2026 World Cup), however.
Diego Maradona – 5 (1986 World Cup)
Maradona’s exploits at the 1986 World Cup effectively defined the tournament. As captain, he led Argentina to their second title with numerous moments of decisiveness.
There was the ‘Hand of God’ and ‘Goal of the Century’, which contributed to his impressive haul of five goals. And on top of those, he set up another five.
Like Pelé in 1970, Maradona is one of only eight players in men’s World Cup history to hit double figures for goal involvements in a single tournament.
Maradona was, unsurprisingly, the recipient of the Golden Ball award for the best player, and his five assists contributed to his multi-tournament total of eight.
Ahead of the 2026 World Cup, Maradona still at least has a share of that record. Messi went level with him on eight during Qatar 2022.
Thomas Häßler – 5 (1994 World Cup)
Thomas Häßler may well have surpassed Pelé if he had stayed in the tournament a bit longer.
Germany, competing for the first time since 1938 as a unified country, were defending champions following West Germany’s success in 1990, but they suffered a shock elimination at he hands of Bulgaria in the quarter-finals.
Prior to that match, Häßler had set up four goals in the group stage and another against Belgium in the last 16. But he fired a blank against Bulgaria, who won 2-1 to reach the semi-finals for the first time.
He had to settle with five assists, though it’s still more than anyone has managed at a single edition of the World Cup since.
Michael Olise – 5 (2026 World Cup)
Michael Olise came into the 2026 World Cup in fine form, having produced 22 goals and 26 assists in all competitions for Bayern Munich in the 2025-26 campaign.
Getting to play with the likes of Ousmane Dembélé, Bradley Barcola and Kylian Mbappé at international level certainly helps, too.
Olise provided an assist for Mbappé in France’s opening win over Senegal, and then another two in the victory over Iraq.
The former Crystal Palace man also produced a pair of assists in Les Bleus’ 3-0 win in the last 32 against Sweden to get to five after just four games, and he has time to potentially be the man to finally pull level with, or even eclipse, Pelé’s record…
Nine Players – 4 Assists
Nine players have laid on four assists for teammates at a men’s World Cup:
Sigfried Held (West Germany), 1966 World CupTostão (Brazil), 1970 World CupZico (Brazil), 1982 World CupIgor Belanov (USSR), 1986 World CupMichael Ballack (Germany), 2002 World CupFrancesco Totti (Italy), 2006 World CupJuan Román Riquelme (Argentina), 2006 World CupJuan Cuadrado (Colombia), 2014 World CupBruno Guimarães (Brazil), 2026 World Cup
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