During Tuesday’s 4-1 defeat to Spain in Seville, Croatia’s Luka Modric made his 204th international appearance as an 81st-minute substitute. The 41-year-old midfielder now sits three appearances behind Lionel Messi, positioning the Croatia captain to become the second most-capped men’s international player in history.
The Race to Catch Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi holds 207 caps and will add one more on October 6 during his farewell appearance for Argentina against Benin at the Estadio Monumental. That final fixture freezes Messi’s international tally at 208 caps, establishing a fixed target for Modric to chase. Croatia has four UEFA Nations League fixtures remaining on the calendar: a home match against England in Rijeka on October 3, a rematch with Spain in Split on October 6, an away fixture at Wembley against England on November 12, and a home game against Czechia in Osijek on November 15.
If Modric features in all four matches, he will draw level with Messi at 208 appearances by the end of the year. Any movement past that mark will fall into 2027 at the earliest. Croatia manager Slaven Bilic manages his captain’s minutes carefully across these demanding windows to balance international duties with club commitments at AC Milan, where Modric is under contract through June 2027. Despite the heavy workload, Modric reaffirmed his availability to the Croatian Football Federation following the World Cup.
Cristiano Ronaldo Leads the All-Time List
Catching Cristiano Ronaldo presents a significantly wider gap. The Portuguese forward leads the all-time men’s list with 234 caps—30 more than Modric—and has not announced plans to retire from international football. Although left out of the squad for Portugal’s 2-1 victory against Norway, Ronaldo is still set to be available for as many as four fixtures prior to year’s end: facing Denmark on October 1, Norway on October 4, Denmark on November 14, and Wales on November 17.
At 41 years old, Ronaldo continues to feature regularly under manager Jorge Jesus, leaving Modric facing a substantial margin that requires both an extended playing career and a continued absence of retirement plans from the Portuguese captain. Ahead of Portugal’s Nations League opener against Wales, Ronaldo addressed the appearance record directly. “Is it possible? Yes. Is it very likely? Yes. But will it happen? No, I don’t know,” Ronaldo said regarding the longevity of his milestones.
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