Top 20 Venezuelan Football (Soccer) Players of All Time

Top 20 Venezuelan Football (Soccer) Players of All Time

*Originally published by Hamisi in September 2022 and updated by Ian S in March 2024

The Venezuela national football team are nicknamed La Vinotinto because of the traditional burgundy color of their shirts.

During the qualifiers they narrowly missed out of the world cup after coming fifth after finishing in fifth place behind USA.

1. Ricardo David Páez Gómez

Ricardo David Páez Gómez (born February 9, 1979, in Acarigua) is a retired Venezuelan footballer. During his career, he played for clubs in 10 different countries, among them Belgium, Argentina (although he only appeared for the reserves at Boca Juniors), México, United Arab Emirates, Ecuador, Colombia, Romania, Greece, Peru and Spain.

He made his debut for Venezuela on August 10, 2000, during a 5–1 friendly win in Costa Rica. During his career, he represented Venezuela in three Copa América competitions. In the 2007 edition, as the hosts progressed through the group stages, Páez scored once in three matches. In total, he was capped 64 times.

2. Jorge Valdivia

With his date of birth documented as 19 October 1983, Jorge Luis Valdivia Toro is a Chilean former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He is a product of Colo-Colo youth ranks. He began his successful soccer career at Universidad de Concepción in 2003. In 2006, he won the Torneo Apertura title with Colo-Colo, before moving to Palmeiras.

He was a key member of the 2015 Copa América winning squad (the first ever achieved by his national team in its history). This was after making two appearances in two past editions (2007 and 2011). If they had qualified for the world cup, this would have been his third appearance after the 2010 and 2014 World Cups. It is said that during his career, he scored 7 goals in 78 caps.

 He is also considered one of the greatest playmakers in the Chilean football history and boasts of praises by football legends like Pelé or Carlos Valderrama. Due to his talent and divisive figure, he was given the nicknames “El Mago” (the wizard) throughout his career. Valdivia was a “classic number 10”, who was best known for his passing ability and skills.

3. Danny

Daniel Miguel Alves Gomes. Author Vyacheslav Evdokimov. Wikimedia Commons

Daniel Miguel Alves Gomes commonly known as Danny was born on 7 August 1983. He is a professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.  He had the privilege of playing for two different countries, the other being Portugal.

He was also known to play as an alternating winger and was recognized for his dribbling and key passes. He spent most of his career in Russia in service of Dynamo Moscow and Zenit, after arriving at the age of 21 from Sporting.

 He won six items of silverware with Zenit, including three Russian Premier League titles. Danny represented Portugal at the 2010 World Cup and the 2004 Olympics.

4. Jeffrén Suárez

Jeffrén Isaac Suárez Bermúdez, known simply as Jeffrén, is a Venezuelan footballer who plays as a forward or winger for Thai club Lamphun Warrior and the national team. His date of birth is recorded as 20 January 1988 and started his career with Barcelona, where he made rare appearances and signing with Sporting CP in 2011.

Apart from playing in Spain, he also played professionally in Portugal, Belgium, Switzerland, Cyprus, Croatia, the United Arab Emirates and Thailand.

Jeffrén won 30 caps for Spain at youth level, winning the European Championships with the under-19 and the under-21 teams. In 2015, he graduated to the Venezuelan senior national team.

5. Salomón Rondón

Salomón Rondón with PFC CSKA. Author Anton Zaitsev. WikimediaCommons

He was born, José Salomón Rondón Giménez, on 16 September 1989. A Venezuela international since 2008, Rondón is the country’s all-time top goal scorer with 35 goals, and he has represented his country in four Copa América tournaments.

At club level, after starting out at Aragua, he successfully went on to spend most of his career in Europe, playing in La Liga with Málaga, the Russian Premier League with Rubin Kazan, Zenit Saint Petersburg (winning the 2015 national championship with the latter club) & CSKA Moscow, and the Premier League with West Bromwich Albion, Newcastle United and Everton.

 6. Tomás Rincón

Tomás Rincón . Author Hayden Schiff. WikimediaCommons

Tomás Eduardo Rincón Hernández was born 13 January 1988 and is a Venezuelan professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder or full-back for Italian Serie A club Sampdoria and the Venezuela national team. He is also the captain of the national team.

 7. Fernando Amorebieta

Fernando Gabriel Amorebieta Mardaras, born 29 March 1985, is a professional footballer who plays as a central defender. He spent most of his career with Athletic Bilbao, appearing in 253 competitive matches over eight La Liga seasons.

Despite being a defender, he scored four goals for the club. His soccer career also extended to England with Fulham and Middleborough, Argentina and Paraguay.

 Amorebieta is reported to have also played for Spain (where he spent most of his early life) at youth level. Later, he decided to represent his country of birth Venezuela as a senior, appearing for the nation at the 2015 Copa América.

8. Josef Martínez

Josef Alexander Martínez Mencia is a Venezuelan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Major League Soccer club Atlanta United and the Venezuela national team. He was born on 19 May 1993 and began his career with Caracas.

His illustrious soccer career saw him play in the Swiss Super League club for Young Boys before spending a year on loan at Thun. In 2014, he was sold to Italian club Torino, and in 2017, Major League Soccer expansion side, Atlanta United FC.

 He holds the MLS record for career hat-tricks with six in his first 44 games, the record for cumulative goals in regular and post season with 35, the record for most consecutive games with a goal (15), and formerly held the record for goals in a single season (31 in 2018). On top of his achievements, Martinez scored 100 goals in the MLS faster than any single player in league history (125 games).

In 2018, Martínez became the most decorated single-season player in MLS history by winning the League MVP, All-Star Game MVP, Golden Boot, and MLS Cup Final MVP

 9. Miku

Nicolás Ladislao Fedor Flores was born 19 August 1985. He is commonly known as Miku and is a Venezuelan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Primera División RFEF club Real Murcia.

 His professional career started in Spain, having played for several clubs, among them Valencia. In La Liga, he also represented Getafe and Rayo Vallecano, and won a Scottish double while on loan at Celtic in 2013. Miku has represented Venezuela in two Copa América tournaments.

10. José Manuel Rey

José Manuel Rey Cortegoso (born 20 May 1975) is a Venezuelan former footballer who played as a central defender and is currently a manager.  Known as a free kick specialist, he was nicknamed Pokemón and Tetero. He represented mainly Caracas in a 20-year professional career.

 Rey was at one time Venezuela’s second-most ever capped player, surpassing 100 international appearances. He was part of the squads at six Copa América tournaments.

11. Juan Arango

Borusse86, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Juan Fernando Arango Sáenz is a former Venezuelan professional footballer who primarily played as an attacking midfielder. He spent a significant portion of his career in La Liga with Mallorca, making 196 appearances. At the age of 29, he joined Borussia Mönchengladbach in Germany, where he played for several years.

Arango held the record for most international caps and goals for Venezuela for a considerable period, scoring 22 goals in 129 matches between 1999 and 2015. He represented his nation in six editions of the Copa América tournament.

12. Ronald Vargas

Vinotinto1000, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Ronald Alejandro Vargas Aranguren is a former Venezuelan professional footballer who played as a forward. He represented the Venezuelan national team 23 times, scoring 3 goals. Vargas made his international debut in a 1-0 win over Haiti in February 2008 and scored his first goal in a historic 2-0 victory against Brazil later that year.

On September 9, 2009, he netted the final goal in Venezuela’s 3-1 win over Peru. Vargas was part of the 2015 Copa America squad, where Venezuela defeated Colombia 1-0, marking their first-ever victory over their neighbors in the competition.

He had an impressive performance, nearly giving Venezuela the lead with a shot that forced a fine save from David Ospina.

13. Roberto Rosales

Hayden Schiff from Cincinnati, USA, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Roberto José Rosales Altuve is a Venezuelan professional footballer who currently plays for Sport Recife in Brazil and represents the Venezuelan national team. Primarily a right-back, he can also operate as a right midfielder.

Rosales made his international debut for Venezuela in 2007 against New Zealand. After making sporadic appearances over four years, he became a regular call-up for the 2011 Copa América, helping his nation reach the semi-finals and finish fourth. His 50th cap came in a 2014 loss to Honduras.

Rosales was subsequently part of Venezuela’s squads for the 2015 Copa América and the Copa América Centenario in 2016, solidifying his status as a key member of the national team setup over the years.

14. Dani Hernández

Daniel ‘Dani’ Hernández Santos is a retired Venezuelan professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Born in Caracas, he spent most of his career in the lower tiers of Spanish football until age 25, representing clubs like Rayo Majadahonda and Real Murcia.

In 2010, he had a standout performance against Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey. After stints with Huesca and Valladolid, where he helped earn promotion to La Liga, he played in Greece with Asteras Tripolis. Hernández then joined Tenerife, becoming their third most-capped goalkeeper.

He made his Venezuela debut in 2010 against Ecuador and was part of their 2011 Copa America squad, primarily serving as a backup goalkeeper throughout his international career.

15. Oswaldo Vizcarrondo

Hefebreo, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Oswaldo Augusto Vizcarrondo Araujo is a former Venezuelan international footballer who played as a center-back. After retiring from professional football in 2019, he transitioned into coaching in 2020, taking roles with AS Sautron (French Cup), FC Nantes women’s team, and as an assistant coach for FC Nantes’ men’s first team in Ligue 1.

Vizcarrondo had an accomplished international career with Venezuela, earning over 80 caps and scoring 7 goals for the national team between 2004 and 2011. He was part of the historic 2011 Copa America squad that finished fourth.

On November 15, 2011, his goal in a 1-0 win over Bolivia helped propel Venezuela to the top of the World Cup qualifying standings at the time.

16. Fernando Aristeguieta

Hayden Schiff from Cincinnati, USA, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Fernando Luis Aristeguieta de Luca is a retired Venezuelan professional footballer who played as a striker for clubs like Caracas and the Venezuelan national team. He began his career with Caracas in 2009 and stayed until 2013, emerging as the top scorer in the 2012 Torneo Apertura at just 20 years old.

His move to Nantes in France helped the club earn promotion to Ligue 1 in 2012-13. Aristeguieta etched his name in Venezuelan football history by becoming the only player to score a hat-trick in the prestigious Clásico between Caracas and Deportivo Táchira.

He was also the first Venezuelan to score in Ligue 1 and the inaugural goalscorer for Mazatlán after the club’s founding in 2020. Aristeguieta represented the Venezuelan national team from 2010 until his retirement.

17. Mario Rondón

Mario Junior Rondón Fernández is a Venezuelan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Romanian club Sepsi OSK. Born in Los Teques, he moved to Portugal at 18 and began his senior career with lower league side A.D. Pontassolense.

After impressing in the third division, Rondón earned a move to Primeira Liga’s F.C. Paços de Ferreira in 2009. He had loan stints with Beira-Mar before returning to Paços, where he was the top scorer in 2010-11. Rondón then joined C.D. Nacional on a five-year deal, netting a career-high 12 goals in 2013-14 to help them reach the Europa League playoffs.

Subsequent moves took him to China with Shijiazhuang and Romanian clubs like Gaz Metan Mediaș and CFR Cluj, where he scored important goals in the league and Europa League. At the international level, Rondón made his Venezuela debut in 2011 and has represented them regularly, scoring his first goal in 2014.

18. Christian Makoun

Christian Frederick Bayoi Makoun Reyes is a Venezuelan professional footballer who can play either as a defensive midfielder or defender. He currently plies his trade with Anorthosis Famagusta FC in the Cypriot First Division in  Cyprus while also representing the Venezuelan national team.

Makoun gained early international experience when he was called up to represent Venezuela at the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup as a part of their under-20 squad. His versatility in being able to operate in both defensive midfield and defensive roles has made him a useful asset for his club and country.

19. Darwin Machís

Hayden Schiff from Cincinnati, USA, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Darwin Daniel Machís Marcano is a Venezuelan professional footballer who plays as a left winger for Cádiz on loan from Real Valladolid and represents the Venezuela national team. He began his career with AC Mineros de Guayana in 2011, impressing with 16 goals in his debut season.

Machís then joined Udinese but was loaned to Granada, making his La Liga debut in 2012. After loan stints with Vitória S.C., Granada’s reserve side, Hércules, Huesca, and Leganés, he signed for Udinese in 2018 before returning to Spain with Cádiz on loan. Machís re-joined Granada in 2019 and scored crucial goals against Villarreal, Real Madrid and Barcelona.

He recently moved to Real Valladolid in 2023 but is currently on loan at Cádiz following their relegation. At international level, Machís made his senior Venezuela debut in 2011 and also represented their U-20 side.

20. Yangel Clemente Herrera

Agencia de Noticias ANDES, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Yangel Clemente Herrera Ravelo is a Venezuelan professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for La Liga club Girona and the Venezuela national team. He began his career at Monagas SC before joining Atlético Venezuela in 2016.

In January 2017, Herrera signed with Manchester City but was immediately loaned to New York City FC for two years, making his debut in a 4-0 win over D.C. United. Following his stint in the MLS, he had loan spells at Huesca, Granada, and Espanyol in La Liga.

In August 2022, Herrera joined newly-promoted Girona on loan, scoring his first goal for them in a 2-2 draw against former club Espanyol. He recently made his move to Girona permanent by signing a four-year contract in July 2023.

Internationally, Herrera made his senior Venezuela debut in 2016 against Brazil and captained their U-20 side at the 2017 World Cup, scoring a crucial goal in the round of 16 win over Japan.