List of Arsenal F.C. players
, an association football club based in Islington, London, was founded in 1886 as Dial Square. They became the first southern member admitted into the Football League in 1893, having spent their first four seasons solely participating in cup tournaments and friendlies. The club's name, which shortly changed to Woolwich Arsenal, was shortened to Arsenal in 1914, a year after the club moved to Highbury. Despite finishing fifth in the Second Division in 1914–15, Arsenal rejoined the First Division at the expense of local rivals Tottenham Hotspur when football resumed after the First World War. Since that time, they have not fallen below the first tier of the English football league system and hold the record for the longest uninterrupted period in the top flight. The club's first team has competed in numerous nationally and internationally organised competitions, and all players who have played in 100 or more such matches are listed below.
David O'Leary holds the record for the greatest number of appearances for Arsenal. Between 1975 and 1993 the Irish defender played 722 times for the club. As of 2024, only eight players have made more than 500 appearances for Arsenal, including four of the so-called "famous five" defenders of the 1990s, Tony Adams, Lee Dixon, David Seaman and Nigel Winterburn. The club's goalscoring record is held by Thierry Henry, who scored 228 goals in all competitions between 1999 and 2007 and during a loan spell with the club in 2012. He surpassed the previous record of 185 goals, held by Ian Wright, in 2005, and became the first player to score 200 goals for Arsenal the following year.
In 2013, Arsenal launched the "100 Club" to formally recognise retired players with over 100 league appearances. As of September 2016, 75 living players have been inducted with a further 26 automatically enrolled once they end their careers.
As of 28 January 2026, a total of 927 players have played at least one official match for Arsenal throughout history. Alongside the British Isles, players from 65 different nationalities have played for Arsenal.
Outside of the British Isles, France are the most represented with 29 players throughout history, followed by Spain with 19 players, and then Brazil with 15 players.
Key
- The list is ordered first by date of debut, and then if necessary in alphabetical order.
- Appearances as a substitute are included. This feature of the game was introduced in the Football League at the start of the 1965–66 season.
Players
Statistics are correct up to and including the match played on 31 January 2026
Captains
64 players have captained Arsenal since it was founded as Dial Square F.C. in 1886, the first being club founder David Danskin, who captained the team until he was forced to retire due to injury in 1889. The club's longest-serving captain is Tony Adams, who captained the club for 14 years between 1988 and 2002, and is frequently known as "Mr. Arsenal" for this achievement. The current captain is Martin Ødegaard.| Dates | Captain |
| 1886–1889 | David Danskin |
| 1889 | Arthur Brown |
| 1889–1890 | Morris Bates |
| 1890–1891 | Bill Julian |
| 1891–1892 | Sandy Robertson Robert Buist David Howat Tom Graham William Stewart |
| 1892–1893 | Charles Booth |
| 1893–1894 | Joe Powell |
| 1894–1895 | David Howat |
| 1895–1896 | Caesar Jenkyns |
| 1896–1898 | Gavin Crawford |
| 1898–1899 | John Anderson |
| 1899–1900 | Joe Murphy |
| 1900–1901 | Duncan McNichol |
| 1901–1905 | Jimmy Jackson |
| 1905–1906 | John Dick |
| 1906–1919 | Percy Sands |
| 1919–1920 | Joe Shaw |
| 1920–1922 | Frank Bradshaw |
| 1922–1923 | Alex Graham |
| 1923–1924 | Billy Blyth |
| 1924–1925 | Alf Baker |
| 1925–1928 | Charlie Buchan |
| 1928–1929 | Billy Blyth |
| 1929–1932 | Tom Parker |
| 1932–1933 | Charlie Jones |
| 1933–1937 | Alex James |
| 1937–1944 | Eddie Hapgood |
| 1944–1947 | George Male |
| 1947–1954 | Joe Mercer |
| 1954 | Jimmy Logie |
| 1954–1955 | Walley Barnes |
| 1955–1956 | Don Roper |
| 1956 | Cliff Holton |
| 1956–1957 | Peter Goring |
| 1957 | Cliff Holton |
| 1957–1958 | Dennis Evans |
| 1958–1959 | Dave Bowen |
| 1959–1962 | Vic Groves |
| 1962–1963 | Terry Neill |
| 1963–1966 | George Eastham |
| 1966–1967 | Don Howe |
| 1967–1973 | Frank McLintock |
| 1973–1974 | Bob McNab |
| 1974–1975 | Alan Ball |
| 1975 | Eddie Kelly |
| 1975–1976 | Alan Ball |
| 1976–1980 | Pat Rice |
| 1980–1983 | David O'Leary |
| 1983–1986 | Graham Rix |
| 1986–1988 | Kenny Sansom |
| 1988–2002 | Tony Adams |
| 2002–2005 | Patrick Vieira |
| 2005–2007 | Thierry Henry |
| 2007–2008 | William Gallas |
| 2008–2011 | Cesc Fabregas |
| 2011–2012 | Robin van Persie |
| 2012–2014 | Thomas Vermaelen |
| 2014–2016 | Mikel Arteta |
| 2016–2018 | Per Mertesacker |
| 2018–2019 | Laurent Koscielny |
| 2019 | Granit Xhaka |
| 2019–2021 | Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang |
| 2021–2022 | Alexandre Lacazette |
| 2022–present | Martin Ødegaard |