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

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Name[2] Spain caps Years active Nation of birth
Eduardo Arbide 1 1921   Argentina
Paulino Alcántara 5 1921–1923   Philippines
Juan Errazquin 6 1925–1928   Argentina
Emilio Sagi Liñán 1 1926   Argentina
Marcelino Gálatas 1 1927   Philippines
Ramón Zabalo 11 1931–1936   England
Jesús Alonso Fernández 3 1942   Cuba
Francisco Martin Arencibia (es) 1 1942   Cuba
László Kubala 19 1953–1961   Hungary
Héctor Rial 5 1955–1958   Argentina
Heriberto Herrera 1 1957   Paraguay
Alfredo Di Stéfano 31 1957–1961   Argentina
José Santamaría 16 1958–1962   Uruguay
Eulogio Martinez 8 1959–1962   Paraguay
Ferenc Puskás 4 1961–1962   Hungary
Vicente Anastasio Jara (es) 1 1966   Paraguay
José Eulogio Gárate 18 1967–1975   Argentina
Juan Carlos Touriño 1 1972   Argentina
José Luis López Peinado 4 1972–1973   Morocco
Rubén Óscar Valdez 9 1972–1974   Argentina
Heraldo Bezerra 1 1973   Brazil
Roberto Juan Martínez 5 1973–1974   Argentina
José Antonio Ramos Huete 4 1975–1977   Morocco
Rubén Cano 12 1977–1979   Argentina
Roberto López Ufarte 15 1977–1982   Morocco
Juan Carlos Heredia 3 1978–1979   Argentina
Gerardo Miranda 9 1981–1985   Mauritania
Álvaro Cervera 4 1991–1992   Equatorial Guinea
Thomas Christiansen 2 1993   Denmark
Pier Luigi Cherubino 1 1994   Italy
Donato Gama da Silva 12 1994–1996   Brazil
Juan Antonio Pizzi 22 1994–1998   Argentina
Armando Álvarez 2 1996–1997   France
Catanha 3 2000   Brazil
Luis Cembranos 1 2000    Switzerland
Curro Torres 5 2001–2002   Germany
Mariano Pernía 11 2006–2007   Argentina
Marcos Senna 28 2006–2010   Brazil
Thiago Alcântara 37 2011–2021   Italy
Diego Costa 24 2014–2018   Brazil
Rodrigo 28 2014–2023   Brazil
Ansu Fati 4 2020–   Guinea-Bissau
Aymeric Laporte 32 2021–   France
Joselu 3 2023–   Germany
Robin Le Normand 15 2023–   France

List by country of birth

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

See also

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References

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  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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