Top 41 fastest footballers in the world — Nany Dimata leads with 39.6 km/h
Pafos FC forward Nany Dimata recorded a top speed of 39.6 km/h in the 2025-26 UEFA Champions League, making him the fastest footballer on a Top 41 list published on 2026-08-19. The ranking compiles measured peak speeds from players across leagues and competitions up to January 2026.
The list, last updated in January 2026, frames pace as a decisive athletic attribute that aids transitions and counterattacks and allows attackers to outpace defenders. Lallianzuala Chhangte, AIFF Men’s Footballer of the Year for 2022-23 and nicknamed the ‘Mizo Flash’, recorded a top speed of 35.18 km/hr during the ISL 2023-24 season and is cited among the quick-footed players. The compilation highlights a range of positions — from wingers to full-backs and centre-backs — where top speed has influenced match moments.
Champions League performers noted on the list include Theo Hernandez, whose average pace this season in the Champions League was 35.7 km/h, and Rafa Silva, who set a high speed of 35.9 km/h while producing vital goals for Benfica. Nuno Tavares is ranked fifth among the competition’s fastest players with an average pace of 36.2 km/h, and Ousmane Dembélé registered a Champions League top speed of 36.6 km/h. Chelsea debutant Mykhailo Mudryk reached 36.63 km/h against Liverpool in January 2023; the article also states he is currently banned from football for a doping offence after failing a drug test.
Several Premier League names feature prominently: Kyle Walker recorded a top speed of 37.31 km/hr during Manchester City’s title-winning run in 2022-23, Micky van de Ven logged 37.38 km/h for Spurs in the Premier League 2023-24 and is described as the fastest player in Premier League history, and van de Ven also posted 37.12 km/h in a match against Manchester United in Premier League 2024-25 Gameweek 6. Dominic Solanke reached 36.10 km/h for AFC Bournemouth against Tottenham Hotspur in early 2023-24, while Denis Zakaria recorded 36.09 km/h after joining Chelsea on loan from Juventus and scored his debut winner against Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League.
The Bundesliga and related domestic-league entries include VfB Stuttgart’s Justin Diehl, who recorded 36.08 km/h during a 2-3 home defeat against Eintracht Frankfurt in Bundesliga 2024-25, and Mohamed-Ngoumou who posted 36.53 km/h in a Bundesliga 2024-25 match for Borussia Mönchengladbach. Sheraldo Becker reached 36.57 km/h late in the 2022-23 season and the article notes he “almost completed 1,113 sprints” during that campaign; St. Juste’s top mark of 36.63 km/h came in Mainz’s encounter with Union Berlin on Matchday 7 of 2021-22.
Individual speed entries cited elsewhere include Achraf Hakimi’s 36.49 km/h achieved while playing for Borussia Dortmund against Union Berlin in January 2020, Erling Haaland’s 36.2 km/h in a Premier League 2022-23 clash against Brighton, and Federico Valverde’s season-long contributions for Real Madrid, with the article stating he “has played in every game” and is having one of the best seasons of his career. The piece also records Darwin Núñez, Rafael Leão, and Alphonso Davies among names associated with notable pace across domestic and international competition.
Additional player speeds and match references listed are Dominik Szoboszlai’s 36.76 km/h for Liverpool against Wolves in Premier League 2023-24; Sirlord Conteh’s 36.82 km/h as a substitute for FC Heidenheim 1846 against Bayern in Bundesliga 2024-25; Pedro Neto’s 36.86 km/h for Wolves when Luton hosted Wolves in Premier League 2023-24; a Luton Town forward’s 36.93 km/h in a Premier League 2023-24 clash against Fulham on 16th September 2023; Dara O’Shea’s 36.73 km/h when Burnley hosted Crystal Palace in Premier League 2023-24; and Gerrit Holtmann’s 36.74 km/h in a 7-2 defeat against Eintracht Frankfurt on Matchday 9 of Bundesliga 2024-25.
The compilation reiterates that Nany Dimata’s 39.6 km/h is the fastest recorded speed in football, achieved in 2026, and notes Micky van de Ven’s previous benchmark that Dimata surpassed. As technology continues to track performance more accurately, the article states that even faster records can be expected in the future.
