With 36 days remaining before the 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks of the expanded 48-team tournament, each country carry the dreams of their people and the ambition of lifting the most coveted trophy in sport.
As the excitement for the World Cup grows, history also tells a quieter story that of four countries who reached football’s biggest stage but never scored a single goal.
DR Congo, Trinidad and Tobago, Indonesia, and China share this rare record. They are the only countries in FIFA World Cup history to have played in the tournament and left without scoring a goal in all their appearances.
It shows how difficult the World Cup is and also proves that just qualifying for the tournament is already a huge achievement.
DR Congo (formerly Zaire) Represented Africa at the 1974 FIFA World Cup in West Germany, becoming the first sub-Saharan African nation to appear at the finals. Placed in a group alongside Brazil, Scotland, and Yugoslavia, they conceded 14 goals across three matches without scoring.
Match Results:
Lost 2-0 vs Scotland.
Lost 9-0 vs Yugoslavia.
Lost 3-0 vs Brazil.
Their participation, nonetheless, opened a door for African football on the world stage that has never since been closed.
Trinidad and Tobago: The Soca Warriors famously qualified for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, they became the smallest nation in terms of population to reach the finals of a World Cup tournament, at that time, a feat previously held by Northern Ireland since their first World Cup appearance at the 1958 World Cup. This record was held until Iceland qualified for the first time in 2018.
Drawing 0-0 against Sweden and falling to Paraguay and England, they defended admirably but were unable to convert any of their limited attacking opportunities across the group stage.
Indonesia (formerly Dutch East Indies): One of the earliest Asian countries to appear at a World Cup, competing at the 1938 tournament in France. They faced Hungary in their only match and were beaten 6-0, departing the competition without a goal in what remained their sole World Cup appearance for nearly nine decades.They famously withdrew in 1958 rather than play Israel.
China Made their one and only World Cup appearance to date at the 2002 tournament co-hosted by South Korea and Japan. Drawn into a group with Brazil, Turkey, and Costa Rica, they conceded nine goals without reply in three matches.