Speed has always been one of the most exciting attributes in football.
But the way pace is tracked, measured, and weaponised in the modern game has taken things to a completely different level.
Thanks to GPS vests, optical tracking cameras, and systems like Hawk-Eye and Second Spectrum, we now have verified top speed data for every professional footballer across every major competition.
The numbers below are not estimates or guesses as they are officially recorded sprint speeds from competitive matches in 2025 and 2026.
Do you want to know who the fastest footballers in the world right now are?
Top 20 Fastest Soccer Players In The World (2026)
Here are the 20 fastest soccer players in the world right now, counting down from 20 to 1.
20. Jeremie Frimpong — Liverpool
Jeremie Frimpong was officially clocked at 36.18 km/h against Arsenal in January 2026, making him one of only four players outside the Premier League’s top six clubs to have broken the 36 km/h barrier in the 2025/26 season.
The Dutch wing back is one of the most explosively quick defenders in the Premier League and his pace was the primary reason Liverpool triggered his release clause from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2025.
He struggled with hamstring injuries in his debut season at Anfield, which limited him to 35 appearances, but when fit and fully firing Frimpong is one of the fastest players in European football and a serious threat going forward from a defensive position.
19. Djed Spence — Tottenham Hotspur
Djed Spence recorded a top speed of 36.62 km/h against Wolves in April 2026, making him the fourth fastest player in the entire 2025/26 Premier League season according to the official Premier League tracking table.
The England international right back has developed into a reliable and explosively quick option for Tottenham on the right flank, and his top speed puts him ahead of far more celebrated names in the Premier League speed rankings.
He is one of the fastest young right backs in world football and his presence in Spurs’ squad gives them genuine elite pace on both flanks.
18. Rafael Leão — AC Milan
Rafael Leão registered a top speed of 36.5 km/h in the 2025/26 season, confirmed by Runner’s World’s World Cup speed data ahead of the tournament in North America.
The Portuguese winger is one of the most physically imposing left wingers in European football, combining a powerful frame with explosive pace and close control that makes him almost impossible to handle when he gets running.
At 26 and representing Portugal at the 2026 World Cup, Leão is in the peak years of his career and one of the most exciting wide players in Serie A.
17. Marcus Rashford — Barcelona (loan)
Marcus Rashford registered a top speed of 36.02 km/h at Barcelona in the 2025/26 La Liga season according to Mundo Deportivo, making him the second fastest player in the Spanish top flight behind Vinicius Jr.
His pace has been one of the key reasons his loan spell at Barcelona has been such a success, giving Hansi Flick a wide option who can drive at defenders in one-on-one situations and punish them with sheer acceleration.
Rashford is one of the fastest players in Premier League history and his 2025/26 season at Barcelona has reminded the football world of exactly what he is capable of when his confidence is high and his system suits him.
16. Yan Diomandé — RB Leipzig
Yan Diomandé registered a top speed of 36.46 km/h in the 2025/26 Bundesliga season, making him the second fastest player in Germany’s top flight this campaign according to Bundesliga.com’s official tracking data.
The 19-year-old Ivory Coast winger also leads the entire Bundesliga for completed dribbles, combining elite pace with elite technical ability in a way that very few teenagers in European football have ever managed.
Liverpool reportedly bid €100 million for him this season and were rejected, and it is easy to see why RB Leipzig refused to sell one of the most exciting young players in world football.
15. Bryan Mbeumo — Manchester United
Bryan Mbeumo recorded a top speed of 36.34 km/h at Fulham in August 2025, the second fastest sprint recorded in the Premier League in the opening weeks of the season according to official Premier League data.
The Cameroonian international moved from Brentford to Manchester United and has immediately made an impact, contributing 21 assists across all competitions in 2025/26, the most of any player in Europe’s top five leagues.
His combination of elite pace, directness, and finishing quality makes him one of the most dangerous wide forwards in the Premier League, and one of the best wingers in world football right now.
14. Anthony Elanga — Newcastle United
Anthony Elanga recorded a top speed of 36.65 km/h in the 2025/26 Champions League, confirming him as one of the fastest wingers in European football this season.
The Swedish international has been one of the most exciting wide players in the Premier League over the last two seasons at Newcastle, and his pace combined with his work rate and directness makes him one of the hardest wingers to contain in England’s top flight.
He is part of a Newcastle squad that Eddie Howe deliberately built around elite pace and transition football, with the Magpies fielding three of the top ten fastest players in the entire 2025/26 Premier League season.
13. Lois Openda — Juventus
Lois Openda was officially clocked at 36.64 km/h in the Bundesliga during his time at RB Leipzig before joining Juventus, making him one of the fastest forwards in European football.
He is one of the most underrated fast attackers in European football and his ability to run in behind at elite speed is the primary reason Juventus signed him.
12. Erling Haaland — Manchester City
Norwegian football legend, Erling Haaland was the fastest player in the 2024/25 UEFA Champions League, reaching 36.9 km/h during the competition, and followed that with a 36.20 km/h sprint against Arsenal in April 2026 that made him Manchester City’s fastest individual of the entire 2025/26 Premier League season.
His pace combined with aerial ability and goalscoring makes him one of the most complete strikers in football history, and his 36 La Liga goals in 2025/26 show that speed is only one part of what makes him so difficult to stop.
11. Gabriel Martinelli — Arsenal
Gabriel Martinelli registered the third fastest speed in the 2025/26 Premier League season, hitting 36.74 km/h against Newcastle United in April 2026 according to the Premier League’s official tracking data.
That figure puts him ahead of every other winger in the English top flight this season and reflects how central his explosive pace is to Arsenal’s attacking play under Mikel Arteta.
Martinelli is one of the best left wingers in the Premier League and his combination of speed, directness, and pressing intensity from the front makes him one of the most complete wide forwards in England.
10. Alphonso Davies — Bayern Munich
Alphonso Davies has earned the nickname “The Roadrunner” with good reason, having been officially measured at 36.51 km/h during a Bundesliga match, making him one of the fastest left-backs in the history of the sport.
The Canadian international averages 12.8 km of total distance per match, the highest of any outfield player in the Bundesliga, with 3.2 km of that covered at sprint speed above 25 km/h, a combination of volume and velocity that no other full back in European football can match.
His ability to sprint the full length of the pitch in a recovery position and then drive into attack in the next phase is what makes him one of the best full backs in the world.
Davies is the fastest player at the 2026 World Cup with Canada and gives his country a genuine X-factor in open play that most group stage opponents simply cannot handle.
9. Anthony Gordon — FC Barcelona
Anthony Gordon was confirmed as the fastest player in the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League, nearly breaking the 38 km/h mark during the competition’s league phase.
The England winger, who just recently joined FC Barcelona has consistently been one of the top three fastest players in the Premier League across the last two seasons, and his top speed puts him among the elite handful of players in world football capable of reaching those figures.
His pace is a central part of Eddie Howe’s tactical approach at Newcastle, who deliberately built one of the fastest squads in the Premier League to devastate teams on the counter-attack.
Gordon is one of the most exciting young attackers in world football and heading into the 2026 World Cup with England as one of Thomas Tuchel’s sharpest weapons in transition.
8. Vinicius Jr. — Real Madrid
Vinicius Jr. is the fastest player in La Liga in the 2025/26 season, having been officially measured at 36.21 km/h by Kognia and BeSoccerPro tracking systems, as reported by Mundo Deportivo.
What makes Vinicius truly exceptional is not just his top speed but his acceleration and dribbling ability at pace, reaching 90% of his top speed in just 2.8 seconds and completing an average of 6.8 dribble attempts per game.
Vinicius is one of the most dangerous attackers in football and his explosive pace is central to everything Real Madrid do in transition.
7. Adama Traoré — Free Agent
Adama Traoré has been one of the fastest footballers on the planet for the better part of a decade and his top recorded speed of 37.5 km/h, verified across both the Premier League and La Liga, makes him one of only five players ever to have been clocked above 37 km/h in a competitive match.
The Spain international is built unlike almost any other player in professional football, combining the physique of an American football player with the technical quality and dribbling ability of an elite winger.
His 37.5 km/h top speed is genuinely astonishing for a player his size, and it is consistently verified rather than a one-off anomaly.
Traoré is one of the best dribblers in football and when he gets into full stride he is the most physically imposing winger in the game.
On 10 June 2026, his club West Ham United announced he was being released in the wake of the team’s relegation to the EFL Championship.
6. Achraf Hakimi — Paris Saint-Germain
Achraf Hakimi recorded a top speed of 37.03 km/h during PSG’s 2025/26 Champions League campaign, the third-fastest speed measured in the entire competition that season, making him the fastest right back in world football.
His combination of elite pace and attacking intelligence is what separates him from every other full back in the game, and his speed has been consistently measured above 36.5 km/h across multiple competitions and multiple seasons.
He is one of the best right backs in the world and captains Morocco at the 2026 World Cup as one of the fastest outfield players at the entire tournament.
The fact that one of the planet’s top three fastest players in elite competition is a defender rather than a forward tells you everything about how the full back position has evolved in modern football.
5. Jackson Tchatchoua — Wolverhampton Wanderers
Jackson Tchatchoua recorded the fastest sprint of any player in the 2025/26 Premier League season, hitting 37.30 km/h against Everton on the opening weekend of the campaign in August 2025.
That figure is the third-fastest speed ever recorded in Premier League history, behind only van de Ven’s all-time record and Kyle Walker’s 37.31 km/h from 2023.
Tchatchoua is one of the most electrifying wide defenders in the Premier League and his explosive pace has made Wolves one of the most dangerous teams in transition in the division.
4. Micky van de Ven — Tottenham Hotspur
Micky van de Ven holds the all-time Premier League speed record, having been officially clocked at 37.38 km/h against Brentford in January 2024, the fastest speed ever recorded in the English top flight since official tracking began in 2020/21.
What makes van de Ven’s pace so remarkable is that he is a centre back, and his ability to sprint the length of the pitch in recovery has repeatedly bailed Tottenham out of danger.
The Dutchman is one of the best defenders in the world and at the 2026 World Cup with the Netherlands, his recovery pace made him one of the most talked-about physical specimens at the tournament.
3. Karim Adeyemi — Borussia Dortmund
Karim Adeyemi was officially measured at 37.6 km/h in the Bundesliga, making him the fastest player ever recorded in Germany’s top flight.
The German international winger is a devastating sprinter with the ball at his feet, and his combination of explosive acceleration and technical quality makes him one of the most difficult players to defend against in the entire Bundesliga.
He came through the Red Bull Salzburg system and has developed into a full German international, representing his country at the 2026 World Cup as one of their most dangerous attacking threats.
Adeyemi is one of the best wingers in the world when at his pace-driven best and at just 24 his speed ceiling may not even have been reached yet.
2. Kylian Mbappé — Real Madrid
Kylian Mbappé is the fastest footballer at elite level in the world’s biggest competitions, with a verified top speed of 38.0 km/h recorded during the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League via GPS tracking.
He is the benchmark in European football for raw pace, and multiple independent tracking systems including Mediacoach and Second Spectrum have consistently confirmed his position at the very top.
What makes Mbappé uniquely dangerous is not just his top speed but his acceleration, reaching 90% of maximum velocity in just 2.6 seconds from a standing start, the fastest such figure among any active elite player.
Mbappé is one of the best players of all time and his pace has never shown any sign of declining despite him turning 27 this year.
1. Gabriel Silva — Santa Clara
Gabriel Silva is not a household name yet, but he holds the most extraordinary speed record in world football.
The 24-year-old Brazilian winger recorded a top speed of 40.3 km/h during a stoppage-time counter-attack for Santa Clara against Famalicão in the Portuguese Primeira Liga in May 2025.
That figure is the fastest officially recorded sprint speed by any professional footballer in a competitive match in recent football history, and it was captured by official optical tracking cameras.
Silva came through the Palmeiras academy in Brazil before joining Santa Clara on loan and then permanently, and at just 24 years old he is one of the most explosively quick wide players in European football.
If you enjoyed this article, check out our list of the highest jumpers in football and our guide to the fittest footballers in the world right now.
