List of Spain international footballers born outside Spain

A number of the male footballers who have reached international status with Spain were not born in the country. Some were born overseas and moved there at a young age (as far as this list is concerned, more often they were the children of Spanish migrants who decided to return, rather than migrant newcomers from other parts of the world)[1] while others became naturalised citizens of Spain after living there for the required period and never being selected by their homeland – for some countries, including those of Latin America, this process requires only a few years of residency, which has allowed several Brazil-born players to play for Spain having only moved there in the course of their professional careers. Prior to the 1960s, players were not tied to a single national team having appeared for them, and some of the leading foreign players in the Spanish league in the 1950s thus were selected on residency grounds.

Alfredo Di Stéfano (left) and Ferenc Puskás both played for Spain in the 1950s while playing for Real Madrid, having already appeared for their nations of birth (Argentina and Hungary respectively)
José Eulogio Gárate was born in Argentina but lived in Eibar from a young age
Roberto López Ufarte was born in Morocco but lived in Irun from a young age
Thiago Alcântara, the son of Brazilian player Mazinho, was born in Italy but lived in Spain from a young age
Diego Costa opted to play for Spain at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, causing anger in his native Brazil who also wanted him to play for them

This list does not include players born in non-peninsular Spain (the Canary Islands, Balearic Islands, Ceuta and Melilla, all of which have provided at least one player for the national team), nor any internationals of other heritage who were born in Spain.

List of players

Name[2] Spain caps Years active Nation of birth
Ramón Zabalo 11 1931–1936  England
Roberto López Ufarte 15 1977–1982  Morocco
Eduardo Arbide 1 1921  Argentina
Marcelino Gálatas 1 1927  Philippines
Alfredo Di Stéfano 31 1957–1961  Argentina
Marcos Senna 28 2006–2010  Brazil
José Eulogio Gárate 18 1967–1975  Argentina
Ferenc Puskás 4 1961–1962  Hungary
László Kubala 19 1953–1961  Hungary
Donato Gama da Silva 12 1994–1996  Brazil
Juan Errazquin 6 1925–1928  Argentina
Rubén Cano 12 1977–1979  Argentina
Eulogio Martinez 8 1959–1962  Paraguay
José Santamaría 16 1958–1962  Uruguay
Heriberto Herrera 1 1957  Paraguay
Juan Antonio Pizzi 22 1994–1998  Argentina
Catanha 3 2000  Brazil
Rubén Óscar Valdez 9 1972–1974  Argentina
Juan Carlos Heredia 3 1978–1979  Argentina
Thomas Christiansen 2 1993  Denmark
Héctor Rial 5 1955–1958  Argentina
Gerardo Miranda 9 1981–1985  Mauritania
Heraldo Bezerra 1 1973  Brazil
Curro Torres 5 2001–2002  Germany
Roberto Juan Martínez 5 1973–1974  Argentina
Paulino Alcántara 5 1921–1923  Philippines
Mariano Pernía 11 2006–2007  Argentina
Francisco Martin Arencibia (es) 1 1942  Cuba
Luis Cembranos 1 2000   Switzerland
Pier Luigi Cherubino 1 1994  Italy
José Luis López Peinado 4 1972–1973  Morocco
Álvaro Cervera 4 1991–1992  Equatorial Guinea
Jesús Alonso Fernández 3 1942  Cuba
Emilio Sagi Liñán 1 1926  Argentina
Vicente Anastasio Jara (es) 1 1966  Paraguay
José Antonio Ramos Huete 4 1975–1977  Morocco
Armando Álvarez 2 1996–1997  France
Juan Carlos Touriño 1 1972  Argentina
Diego Costa 24 2014–  Brazil
Thiago Alcântara 37 2011–  Italy
Rodrigo 22 2015–  Brazil
Ansu Fati 2 2020–  Guinea-Bissau

List by country of birth

Country Total
 Argentina 13
 Brazil 6
 Morocco 3
 Paraguay 3
 Cuba 2
 Hungary 2
 Italy 2
 Philippines 2
 Denmark 1
 England 1
 Equatorial Guinea 1
 France 1
 Germany 1
 Guinea-Bissau 1
 Mauritania 1
  Switzerland 1
 Uruguay 1

See also

References

  1. "Los 11 jugadores nacidos fuera de España con más partidos" [The 11 players born outside Spain with the most matches] (in Spanish). Diario AS. 5 September 2016. Retrieved 13 March 2019.
  2. "Todos los extranjeros que jugaron con La Roja" (in Spanish). El Gold Digital. 30 October 2013. Retrieved 30 October 2013.
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