Who has lost the most World Cup finals? Who has made the most finals without winning? How many finals have France lost?

ByEurosport

Updated 18/12/2022 at 19:45 GMT

Getting to the World Cup itself should be a celebrated thing. It is a tournament that is only held once every four years and features some of the very best players in the world. Of course most people will focus on the winning but as we reach the final of the 2022 World Cup it’s worth taking a look at some of the records for the losers. So let’s jump right in, shall we?

We now know the winners of the Qatar 2022 World Cup, and it's Lionel Messi's Argentina after a breathtaking penalty shoot-out win over France.

Of course whenever there is a winner there must also be a loser, and that brings us to the question of who has lost the World Cup final the most times?

And it’s not just that; which team has also reached the final the most but never won it? Well let’s answer those questions and more.

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Which team has lost the World Cup final the most times?

France have now lost two World Cup finals - after their defeat to Italy in 2006 - but it may surprise you to learn that Germany have lost the World Cup final the most, having finished as runners-up on four occasions.

Of course, Germany have also won the World Cup four times, meaning they have reached the final a total of eight times. But is that the most?

Which team has reached the World Cup final the most times?

Yes it is Germany, with their eight World Cup finals.

Just behind them are Brazil, who have been in seven finals and Italy - and now Argentina - who have reached six finals.

Germany won the World Cup in 2014

Image credit: Getty Images

Which team has reached the most World Cup finals without winning?

Not the most fun topic to look at, but of course there’s always a team that can get to the final but can’t seem to get over the final hurdle.

That team is the Netherlands, who have reached three finals but never have triumphed.

Czech Republic and Hungary both have reached two finals without winning whilst Sweden and Croatia both reached one final and failed to win.

Fun fact on Sweden, they are the only host to reach the final and lose, to Brazil in 1958.

Which teams have never lost a final?

There are three teams who have reached the final and never lost.

They are Uruguay (1930 and 1950), England (1966) and Spain (2010).

• World Cup in Qatar fixtures/results
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• World Cup in Qatar top scorers

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To celebrate the 2022 World Cup, we have launched our new bracket game, where you can give your predictions, challenge friends and create mini-leagues.

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