List of Manchester United F.C. players
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester. The club was formed in Newton Heath in 1878 as Newton Heath LYR F.C., and played their first competitive match in October 1886, when they entered the First Round of the 1886–87 FA Cup. The club was renamed Manchester United F.C. in 1902, and they moved to Old Trafford in 1910. The club won its first significant trophy in 1908, the First Division title. Since then, the club has won a further 19 league titles, along with 13 FA Cups and six League Cups, among many other honours. They have also been crowned champions of Europe on three occasions by winning the European Cup. The club was one of 22 teams in the Premier League when it was formed in 1992. They experienced the most successful period in their history under the management of Alex Ferguson, who guided the team to 13 league titles in 21 years.
Since the club's first competitive match, 983 players have made a competitive first-team appearance for the club, of whom 227 players have made at least 100 appearances. Manchester United's record appearance-maker is Ryan Giggs, who made a total of 963 appearances over a 23-year playing career; he broke Bobby Charlton's previous appearance record in the 2008 UEFA Champions League final. Giggs also holds the record for the most starts, and for the most matches played as a substitute.
Charlton was also the club's top goalscorer with 249 goals in his 17 years with the club. He held the mark for 45 years, until his record was overtaken by Wayne Rooney, who scored his 250th goal during the 2016–17 season; Rooney finished his 13-year tenure with Manchester United with 253 goals in 559 appearances. Other than Charlton, Giggs, and Rooney, only eight players have made more than 500 appearances for the club, including three members of the 1968 European Cup–winning team and three members of the 1999 Treble-winning team ; the two other players to reach 500 appearances are Joe Spence, who played for the club during the interwar period, and David de Gea, who played for the club from 2011 to 2023. De Gea, who is Spanish, is the first 500 Club member from outside of the United Kingdom and Ireland. Other than Charlton and Rooney, only two players have scored more than 200 goals for the club.
The most recent player to reach 100 appearances for the club is Argentinian defender Lisandro Martínez, who reached the milestone on 7 January 2026.
List of players
- Appearances and goals are for first-team competitive matches only, including Premier League, Football League, FA Cup, League Cup, Charity/Community Shield, European Cup/Champions League, UEFA Cup/Europa League, Cup Winners' Cup, Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, Super Cup and Club World Cup matches; wartime matches are regarded as unofficial and are excluded, as are matches from the abandoned 1939–40 season.
- Players are listed according to the date of their first-team debut for the club.
- Players in bold are currently under contract with Manchester United.
;Table headersNationality – If a player played international football, the country/countries he played for are shown. Otherwise, the player's nationality is given as their country of birth.Manchester United career – The year of the player's first appearance for Manchester United to the year of his last appearance.Starts – The number of matches started.Sub – The number of matches played as a substitute.Total – The total number of matches played, both as a starter and as a substitute.