Each UEFA member country's best ever footballer

 Each UEFA member country's best ever footballer

Europe is home to the world's premier club football competitions and some of the most iconic footballing nations. Below is a list of the greatest-ever footballer from each UEFA member country.

Albania (Panajot Pano) Panajot Pano achieved legendary status in the 1960s and 1970s, winning multiple league titles in the Albanian Superliga. He won 28 caps and scored four goals.

Andorra (Ildefons Lima) Lima played for Andorra for 26 years, the longest career in men's international football. He made 137 caps and played in Spain for teams like Las Palmas and Rayo Vallecano.

Armenia (Henrikh Mkhitaryan) Mkhitaryan has featured for some of the world's biggest clubs, including Manchester United, Arsenal and Inter Milan.

Austria (David Alaba) Current Real Madrid defender David Alaba has been one of the world's most elite defenders for over a decade, playing for Bayern Munich and Real Madrid.

Azerbaijan (Rashad Sadygov) Sadygov has 111 caps for Azerbaijan and has won Azerbaijani Footballer of the Year six times. He has most notably made over 200 appearances for Qarabag.

Belarus (Alexander Hleb) The Belarussian has cult status at Arsenal due to his unstoppable dribbling and silky skills. Hleb also made over 80 appearances for the Belarussian national team and won the Champions League in 2009 and the English League Cup in 2011.

Belgium (Kevin De Bruyne) Kevin De Bruyne has cemented himself as one of the best players in Premier League history during his time with Manchester City. The Belgian's incredible passing and creativity have led City to every trophy possible and his nation to the 2018 World Cup semi-final.

Bosnia and Herzegovina (Edin Dzeko) Former Manchester City and Inter Milan striker Edin Dzeko has been prolific in some of the world's best leagues. He's scored more than 65 goals for his country.

Bulgaria (Hristo Stoichkov) Stoichkov won the Ballon d'Or in 1994 and was Europe's top scorer in 1989. He scored 37 goals in 83 games for Bulgaria and is best known for playing for FC Barcelona.

Croatia (Luka Modric) Midfield master Luka Modric is a god in Croatia. He led them to the World Cup final in 2018. He is a Ballon d'Or winner and has had a glittering career with Real Madrid. Even now, at 39, Modric is still a key figure at Real Madrid and doesn't appear to be slowing down any time soon.

Cyprus (Sotiris Kaiafas) Kaiafas is regarded as the best Cypriot player of all time, and is best known for winning the European Golden Boot after scoring 41 goals in a season.

Czech Republic (Pavel Nedved) Pavel Nedved was one of the greatest midfielders of his generation, excelling for his country and Juventus. He won the Ballon d'Or in 2003.

Denmark (Peter Schmeichel) Goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel is one of the best goalkeepers ever. He helped Denmark win Euro '92 and won multiple trophies with Manchester United.

England (Bobby Charlton) Bobby Charlton made history by winning the 1966 FIFA World Cup with England and claiming the Ballon d'Or in the same year. He is arguably one of the best players ever.

Estonia (Mart Poom) Poom is considered Estonia's greatest-ever player, winning the Estonian Player of the Year six times and making 120 appearances for the national team.

Faroe Islands (Todi Jonsson) Todi Jonsson scored nine goals in 45 appearances for the Faroe Islands and played for Danish champions FC Copenhagen for almost a decade.

Finland (Jari Litmanen) Finnish attacker Jari Litmanen enjoyed a storied career, winning 23 trophies with various clubs, including the Champions League, UEFA Cup, and FA Cup.

France (Zinedine Zidane) Zidane will go down as one of the greatest footballers ever. He played for Real Madrid and Juventus and won the World Cup and Ballon d'Or in 1998.

Georgia (Khvicha Kvaratskhelia) PSG star Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is his country's best-ever footballer, having won the Georgian Footballer of the Year award multiple times.

Germany (Franz Beckenbauer) Beckenbauer won multiple league titles, domestic cups, and European Cups with Bayern Munich, securing two Ballon d'Or's as a defender. He won Euro '72 and the World Cup in 1974.

Gibraltar (Liam Walker) Liam Walker is Gibraltar's record appearance-maker with over 80 caps and has played in England for Portsmouth and Notts County.

Greece (Theodoros Zagorakis) Winning captain at Euro 2004 for Greece and the player of the tournament, Zagorakis is Greece's most legendary player. The technical midfielder also won the League Cup with Leicester City in 1999

Hungary (Ferenc Puskas) Puskas was the first global superstar in football and was part of Hungary's golden generation that won Olympic Gold. He is most famous for his long-standing career with Real Madrid.

Iceland (Eidur Gudjohnsen) Gudjohnsen scored several goals and won the Champions League and multiple league titles with FC Barcelona and Chelsea. He made 88 appearances for Iceland and scored 26 goals.

Israel (Mordechai Spiegler) Over in the proud European nation that is Israel, Mordechai Spiegler is considered that country's greatest ever footballer, winning their Footballer of the Year award four times.

Italy (Paolo Maldini) Italian defender Paolo Maldini is arguably the greatest defender ever and Italy's best-ever player. With seven Serie A titles and five Champions League trophies, Maldini reached a legendary status like no other with AC Milan. He is revered by the game's best strikers.

Kazakhstan (Bakhtiyor Zaynutdinov) Zaynutdinov is Kazakhstan's best football player. He has scored 14 goals in 42 games for his country and has played for Astana, CSKA Moscow, and Besiktas.

Kosovo (Fadil Vokrri) Fadil Vokrri is considered Kosovo's greatest footballer. He most notably played for FC Partizan in Belgrade and was named Yugoslavia's best player in 1987.

Latvia (Maris Verpakovskis) Verpakovskis made 104 appearances for Latvia and is the only player to score in the knockouts at a major tournament for the country (Euro 2004).

Liechtenstein (Rainer Hasler) In 2003, Liechtenstein's FA named Hasler the country's 'Golden Player' to celebrate UEFA's jubilee.

Lithuania (Arminas Narbekovas) Like Hasler, Narbekovas was named Lithuania's greatest player in 2003. He played 13 games and scored four goals.

Luxembourg (Laurent Jans) Jans has made more than 100 appearances for Luxembourg and has played for teams such as Metz, Sc Paderborn, and Standard Liege.

Malta (Michael Mifsud) Mifsud is considered the greatest Maltese player ever, having won 143 caps and scored 42 goals. He even had a trial at Manchester United in 1999.

Moldova (Alexandru Epureanu) He holds the record number of appearances for Moldova (100), making his debut in 2006 and retiring in 2021 due to a knee injury.

Montenegro (Mirko Vucinic) Vucinic is a Roma legend and even had a successful spell with Juventus. He has won Montenegrin Footballer of the Year seven times.

Netherlands (Johan Cruyff) A three-time Ballon d'Or winner, Johan Cruyff revolutionized football with his unique ability. He won trophies with the Netherlands, Ajax, and FC Barcelona.

North Macedonia (Goran Pandev) Pandev is the country's all-time top scorer (39 goals) and won the Serie A, Coppa Italia, and Champions League with Inter Milan.

Northern Ireland (George Best) Winner of the 1968 European Cup and European Footballer of the Year, George Best was known for his dazzling feet for Manchester United and Northern Ireland.

Norway (Erling Haaland) Although it's early, Manchester City striker Erling Haaland is the best player to come out of Norway. His goalscoring ability alone is among the best football has ever seen.

Poland (Robert Lewandowski) FC Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski is arguably the greatest striker of the 21st century. He has scored goals for Dortmund, Bayern Munich, and Barcelona. He has also played 158 games for Poland and scored 85 goals.

Portugal (Cristiano Ronaldo) A five-time Ballon d'Or winner, with over 900 career goals for club and country and countless trophies with Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Juventus, Ronaldo is one of the best ever.

Republic of Ireland (Roy Keane) A serial winner as captain of Manchester United, Keane is one of the best midfielders ever and played for Ireland 67 times.

Romania (Gheorghe Hagi) Hagi was named as one of the 100 best footballers of the 20th century. He played for Real Madrid and FC Barcelona, and also played 124 games for Romania.

Russia (Lev Yashin) Yashin played in three World Cups for Russia between 1958 and 1966 and is the only goalkeeper in history to win the Ballon d'Or.

San Marino (Massimo Bonini) Bonini played for various Italian clubs, including Juventus, where he won a European Cup and three Serie A titles. He made 19 appearances for San Marino.

Scotland (Sir Kenny Dalglish) Dalglish is a hero of Scotland and Liverpool. He is the only Scottish player to be named in the FIFA 100 and the only Scot to win more than 100 caps

Serbia (Dejan Stankovic) Stankovic is regarded as one of the best midfielders of his generation because of his shooting ability and outstanding leadership. He won various trophies in Serie A with Inter Milan.

Slovakia (Marek Hamsik) Hamsik is a Slovakia and Napoli legend, playing over 400 times in Naples and becoming Slovakia's most-capped player (138).

Slovenia (Jan Oblak) Jan Oblak is one of the best goalkeepers of this generation. He played over 300 times in ten years for Atlético Madrid and won La Liga. Oblak has been capped 76 times by his country.

Spain (Andres Iniesta) Iniesta is a legend in Spain and Barcelona. He won countless trophies during both teams' most successful periods, and scored the winning goal in the 2010 World Cup final.

Sweden (Zlatan Ibrahimovic) Ibrahimovic is Sweden's record goalscorer (62 goals) and record appearance holder (122). He has been the star man for teams like Inter Milan, PSG, and Manchester United.

Switzerland (Xherdan Shaqiri) Former Stoke, Liverpool, and Bayern Munich player Xherdan Shaqiri was a magician on his day and could score from anywhere. He is the only player to have scored at the last three Euros and World Cups.

Turkey (Hakan Sukur) Sukur is Turkey's all-time top goalscorer and has been the Turkish Super Lig's top scorer three times. He played for Inter Milan and Torino in Italy.

Ukraine (Andriy Shevchenko) Shevchenko is one of the best strikers of all time. With 175 goals, he became AC Milan's second top goalscorer and Ukraine's top scorer with 48. He is also a Ballon d'Or winner.

Wales (Gareth Bale) Gareth Bale is a Real Madrid and Wales legend, creating countless special moments in big finals for Madrid and leading Wales to their first World Cup in 2022 for the first time since 1958.

See also: The most tragic deaths in football history