Real Madrid legend Alfredo Di Stefano played for three different national teams…
Switching clubs for better opportunities and offers is a very common phenomenon for professional footballers during their playing career.
But switching national teams is not a very common practice for players yet some of the biggest names in world football have played for two or more national teams.
The practice of changing national teams have always been encouraged by FIFA yet there are certain guidelines which need to be followed in order to switch one's loyalty in international football.
While the rules were more lenient in the earlier days when players were allowed to represent more than two national teams, it has now become a lot more strict.
In 2020, FIFA announced at its 70th annual congress that the eligibility rules had been updated, in what administrators have described as the "first wholesale modernisation" of the rules, with added codification and clarification.
From Alfredo Di Stefano to Ferenc Puskas, Michel Platini and Diego Costa, here are some of the top players who represented two or more national teams.
Goal.comDiego Costa
Brazil: 2013
Spain: 2014-present
AdvertisementGettyAlfredo Di Stefano
Argentina: 1947
Colombia: 1949
Spain: 1957-1962
Getty ImagesFerenc Puskas
Hungary: 1945-1956
Spain: 1961-1962
Getty ImagesMichel Platini
France: 1976-1987
Kuwait: 1988