Ranking Clubs by Number of Players in World Cup Squads

In two weeks' time, a total of 736 men will have the honour of representing their country at the planet's biggest sporting event, the World Cup.

Each of those men has a full-time job with a domestic club, but which of these clubs boasts the highest proportion of World Cup stars? Bleacher Report will reveal which club is best represented in Brazil.

Some notes before we begin: At the time of writing, more than half of the 32 competing nations have not declared their final 23-man squads, so these rankings will actually change when the final deadline is reached next Monday.

Also, a player who has spent the full 2013-14 season on loan will be counted for the side he has played for, rather than his parent club. 

Finally, this power ranking features every team with six or more players going to Brazil. 

Let's begin...

Number of players at World Cup: six

Jorge Guagua

Gabriel Achilier

Oscar Bagui

John Narvarez

Pedro Quinonez

Angel Mena

Number of domestic players at World Cup: six

Fourteen of Reinaldo Rueda's 30-man Ecuador squad ply their trade in the domestic league, with six of those players coming from 2013 champions and 2014 league leaders Emelec.

The most experienced of that crop is journeyman centre-back Jorge Guagua, who has 57 caps for his national team.

Number of players at World Cup: six

Serey Die

Yann Sommer

Valentin Stocker

Fabian Schar

Marcelo Diaz

Giovanni Sio

Number of domestic players at World Cup: three

Ottmar Hitzfeld's final 23-man Switzerland squad includes three of the players who helped Basel retain their fifth consecutive Super League title this season. Die and Sio, meanwhile, have both earned call-ups to the provisional Ivory Coast squad.

Number of players at World Cup: six

Gaetan Bong

Giannis Maniatis

Jose Holebas

Kostas Manolas

Andreas Samaris

Joel Campbell

Number of domestic players at World Cup: four

Greece's squad is traditionally dominated by players based in the Greek Superleague, but just nine of Fernando Santos' final selections are domestic players this time. Four of those represent the resilient side that troubled Manchester United in the Champions League this season, Olympiakos. 

Joel Campbell, the winger on loan from Arsenal who famously scored against David Moyes' side, has also been recalled to the Costa Rica provisional squad.

Number of players at World Cup: six

Jeroen Zoet

Karim Rekik

Memphis Depay

Georginio Wijnaldum

Santiago Arias

Bryan Ruiz

Number of domestic players at World Cup: four

Traditional Dutch powerhouse PSV could only manage a fourth-place finish in the Eredivisie this season, but they are sending twice as many players as champions Ajax to the World Cup.

All four of Louis van Gaal's domestic picks from Eindhoven are under 23, with much attention being paid to precocious talents such as left winger Memphis Depay.

Number of players at World Cup: six

Gabriel Paletta

Marco Parolo

Antonio Cassano

Walter Gargano

Joel Obi

Afriyie Acquah

Number of domestic players at World Cup: three

Antonio Cassano may not be at his vivacious best these days, but the striker scored 12 goals and bagged six assists with Parma this season to earn a spot in Cesare Prandelli's 30-man squad. Also joining him are midfielder Marco Parolo and defender Gabriel Paletta, who have three caps between them.

Number of players at World Cup: six

Dejan Lovren

Maya Yoshida

Rickie Lambert

Adam Lallana

Luke Shaw

Gaston Ramirez

Number of domestic players at World Cup: three

Southampton's players may not be sure as to who the manager will be next season, but six of them have something bigger to deal with in the coming weeks.

The Saints were delighted to have a trio of talent called up to Roy Hodgson's squad, including youth prospects Adam Lallana and Luke Shaw, and veteran hitman Rickie Lambert.

Number of players at World Cup: six

Tim Krul

Cheick Tiote

Mathieu Debuchy

Moussa Sissoko

Loic Remy

Shola Ameobi

Number of domestic players at World Cup: zero

France will be hoping to avoid the kind of implosion that blighted their campaigns in 2010 and 2002, and they will do so with the help of three Newcastle stars who couldn't help the Magpies avoid an end-of-season implosion: Mathieu Debuchy, Loic Remy and Moussa Sissoko.

Number of players at World Cup: six

Danijel Subasic

James Rodriguez

Radamel Falcao

Sergio Romero

Elderson

Joao Moutinho

Number of domestic players at World Cup: zero

Colombia coach Jose Pekerman has vowed to wait until the very last moment to reveal his 23-man squad, in order to make a call on star striker Radamel Falcao.

The talismanic forward has been sidelined since January with a knee injury, but he has been training with the Colombian squad, including Monaco teammate James Rodriguez. 

Interestingly, the nouveau riche principality are not sending a single Frenchman to the tournament.

Number of players at World Cup: six

Paulinho

Hugo Lloris

Nabil Bentaleb

Jan Vertonghen

Mousa Dembele

Nacer Chadli

Number of domestic players at World Cup: zero

With Kyle Walker and Andros Townsend missing out through injury, this will be the first World Cup since 1954 that Tottenham have not sent at least one Englishman to the World Cup. By contrast, they sent five players in 2010.

Yet Spurs are the single biggest supplier of players to the purported dark horses of the tournament, Belgium. Vertonghen, Dembele and Chadli should all play a role in Marc Wilmots' squad. 

Number of players at World Cup: six

Maicon

Gervinho

Vasilis Torosidis

Daniel De Rossi

Mattia Destro

Miralem Pjanic

Number of domestic players at World Cup: two

The second of six Serie A teams to make this list, the Giallorossi boast homegrown talent, including Daniele De Rossi (pictured with the unselected Dani Osvaldo) and 23-year-old striker Mattia Destro.

Cesare Prandelli, however, has yet to give any indication as to when he'll trim his 30-man provisional squad down.

Number of players at World Cup: seven

Bruno Martins Indi

Daryl Janmaat

Stefan de Vrij

Terence Kongolo

Jordy Clasie

Jean-Paul Boetius

Tonny Vilhena

Number of domestic players at World Cup: seven

Much is said about the comparative weakness of the Eredivise to other major European leagues, but 2013-14 runners-up Feyenoord are providing seven of Van Gaal's 30-man squad. 

Like PSV's offering, Feyenoord's Dutch stars all have youth on their side; combined, the seven players have 39 less caps than Rafael van der Vaart, who was ruled out of action on Wednesday, per The Guardian.

Number of players at World Cup: seven

Luis Gustavo

Ivan Perisic

Ivica Olic

Diego Benaglio

Ricardo Rodriguez

Vieirinha

Kevin De Bruyne

Number of domestic players at World Cup: zero

Wolfsburg boast two Swiss, two Croatian, a Belgian, a Brazilian and a Portuguese, but no German national team players.

Perisic and Olic were Die Wolfe's two top scorers 2013-14 with a combined 24 league goals, and they shall be looking to have a similarly prolific time in Group A against Mexico, Cameroon and Brazil.

Number of players at World Cup: seven

Seydou Doumbia

Ahmed Musa

Igor Akinfeev

Sergei Ignashevich

Vasili Berezutski

Georgi Shchennikov

Alan Dzagoev

Number of domestic players at World Cup: five

Fabio Capello's Russian national team is composed entirely of players based in the Russian Premier League, five of whom play for 2013-14 champions CSKA Moscow. 

CSKA's two non-Russian representatives in Brazil will be Musa of Nigeria and Doumbia of the Ivory Coast. 

Number of players at World Cup: seven

Joel Matip

Klaas-Jan Huntelaar

Atsuto Uchida

Sead Kolasinac

Benedikt Howedes

Julian Draxler

Kevin Prince-Boateng

Number of domestic players at World Cup: two

After a poor run at Euro 2012, Schalke's 2013-14 top scorer Klaas-Jan Huntelaar will be hoping the Netherlands can show the kind of form they displayed at the 2010 World Cup. 

Die Knappen's player to watch at the tournament, however, might be 20-year-old youth product Julian Draxler, who may reignite transfer interest from clubs such as Arsenal if he is given playing time with Germany.

Number of players at World Cup: seven

Antonio Candreva

Alvaro Gonzalez

Lucas Biglia

Senad Lulic

Ogenyi Onazi

Miroslav Klose

Helder Postiga

Number of domestic players at World Cup: one

Lazio's top scorer Antonio Candreva is their only player to be called to duty by the Azzurri, but all eyes will surely be on veteran striker Miroslav Klose.

The German is battling to reach full fitness, so that he may add to his tally of 14 World Cup goals from three tournaments. With one more, Klose will overtake Gerd Mueller to become Die Mannschaft's all-time top scorer and will equal the all-time World Cup goal record held by Mueller and (Brazilian) Ronaldo.

Number of players at World Cup: eight

Luke Wilkshire

Christian Noboa

Aleksei Kozlov

Vladmir Granat

Igor Denisov

Aleksei Ionov

Yuri Zhirkov

Aleksandr Kokorin

Number of domestic players at World Cup: six

Dynamo Moscow may have finished three places below champions and city neighbours CSKA this season, but they are providing more players for the World Cup and are the biggest single contributor to Capello's Russia squad. 

It's no shock that Dynamo top scorer Aleksandr Kokorin made the grade, while Chelsea flop Yuri Zhirkov has also earned his place. 

The Belo-golubye's two non-Russian representatives will be Australian defender Luke Wilkshire and Ecuadorian midfielder Christian Noboa.

Number of players at World Cup: eight

Hulk

Luis Neto

Nicolas Lombaerts

Axel Witsel

Yuri Lodygin

Viktor Fazyzulin

Oleg Shatov

Aleksandr Kerzhakov

Number of domestic players at World Cup: four

Portuguese midfielder Danny was Zenit's top scorer in 2013-14, but he has curiously fallen out of favour with Paulo Bento.

His defensive colleague Luis Neto, however, has made the Portugal team, while the Russian Premier League champions will see four of their stars in Capello's squad this summer.

Number of players at World Cup: eight

Lacina Traore

Leighton Baines

Phil Jagielka

Ross Barkley

Tim Howard

Kevin Mirallas

Romelu Lukaku

Gerard Deulofeu

Number of domestic players at World Cup: three

Ross Barkley has had something of an annus mirabilis with Everton this season, and he will hope to be rewarded with some playing time under an England manager who has seemed quite keen to blood the youngsters (although his squad number suggests he might be lower down the pecking order). 

Earlier this week, Barcelona loan star Gerard Deulofeu was added to Spain's preliminary squad in place of Thiago Alcantara. 

Number of players at World Cup: eight

Mitchell Langerak

Sokratis Papastathopoulos

Roman Weidenfeller

Mats Hummels

Marcel Schmelzer

Kevin Grosskreutz

Erik Durm

Marco Reus

Number of domestic players at World Cup: six

The German national team has been criticised for not having too many out-and-out strike options in this tournament, but Joachim Loew will be hoping Reus will continue with the incredible goalscoring form he showed for BvB at the end of the 2013-14 Bundesliga season. 

Outside of the Nationalmannschaft, reserve keeper Mitchell Langerak has made the Australia provisional squad and Sokratis Papastathopoulos is in the Greece setup.

Number of players at World Cup: nine

Diego Reyes

Hector Herrera

Juan Fernando Quintero

Jackson Martinez

Jorge Fucile

Eliaquim Mangala

Silvestre Varela

Nabil Ghilas

Stevan Defour

Number of domestic players at World Cup: one

Porto finished third in the Portuguese Liga in 2013-14, thanks to the continued efforts of Jackson Martinez, who scored 20 times—15 goals more than anyone else on the side.

If Radamel Falcao struggles for full fitness, Jackson will need to step up his efforts for Jose Pekerman's Colombia side.

Number of players at World Cup: nine

Hernanes

Mateo Kovacic

Fredy Guarin

Yuto Nagatomo

Andrea Ranocchia

Hugo Campagnaro

Ricardo Alvarez

Rodrigo Palacio

Saphir Taider

Number of domestic players at World Cup: one

Internazionale earned their name for their propensity to rely on foreign talent, which is evident this summer with just Andrea Ranocchia filling out Prandelli's provisional squad. 

The Nerazzurri boast three players in Argentina's squad in Palacio, Campagnaro and Alvarez. Their chances of boasting another World Cup winner next season are also increased by winter signing Hernanes, who has made Big Phil's cut.

Number of players at World Cup: nine

Nigel De Jong

Cristian Zapata

Keisuke Honda

Ignazio Abate

Mattia De Sciglio

Riccardo Montolivo

Mario Balotelli

Sulley Muntari

Michael Essien

Number of domestic players at World Cup: four

Milan are providing four players for the Azzurri, including the man who flits between game-changing skill and abject anonymity: Mario Balotelli. Elsewhere, the Rossoneri will lend Essien and Muntari to Ghana's attempts to escape the "Group of Death," while Honda represents one of Japan's brightest hopes of exiting Group C.

Number of players at World Cup: 10

Thiago Silva

Maxwell

Salvatore Sirigu

Thiago Motta

Marco Verratti

Edinson Cavani

Lucas Digne

Yohan Cabaye

Blaise Matuidi

Ezequiel Lavezzi

Number of domestic players at World Cup: three

Unsurprisingly, the Ligue 1 side with the highest proportion of World Cup stars is PSG. The French champions will boast three domestic stars, three Italians, two Brazilians and an Argentinean. 

World Cup fans will need no reminding that a certain talismanic Swede who scored 40 goals in the last campaign will be conspicuous by his absence in Brazil.

Number of players at World Cup: 10

Santi Cazorla

Jack Wilshere

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain

Bacary Sagna

Laurent Koscielny

Olivier Giroud

Per Mertesacker

Mesut Ozil

Lukas Podolski

Thomas Vermaelen

Number of domestic players at World Cup: two

Arsenal managed to secure two pieces of silverware this season (The FA Cup and the Fourth Place Trophy), thanks to their wealth of world-class talent.

Wilshere and the Ox, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, should feature in Hodgson's youthful teams, while Laurent Koscielny, Olivier Giroud and Bacary Sagna will attempt to steer clear of another French implosion.

Number of players at World Cup: 10

Kolo Toure

Glen Johnson

Steven Gerrard

Daniel Sturridge

Jordan Henderson

Raheem Sterling

Luis Suarez

Mamadou Sakho

Victor Moses

Simon Mignolet

Number of domestic players at World Cup: five

Liverpool may have squandered the chance of winning their first league title in over two decades, but they may take a quantum of solace from being England's largest single supplier of World Cup players. 

Ironically, the Reds also boast the Uruguayan striker who threatens to seriously dent the Three Lions' progress at the tournament.

Number of players at World Cup: 10

Juanfran

Koke

David Villa

Diego Costa

Diego Godin

Jose Maria Gimenez

Cristian Rodriguez

Jose Ernesto Sosa

Thibaut Courtois

Toby Alderweireld

Number of domestic players at World Cup: four

Atletico Madrid enjoyed incredible success in 2013-14, so it is little surprise that a squad that won La Liga and reached the Champions League Final features so highly in the World Cup power rankings. 

Atleti would have featured even higher if Big Phil had selected superb centre-back Joao Miranda in his final squad, but many were surprised to see him bumped in favour of Napoli's Henrique.

The biggest question mark of these selections hangs over Costa, who will battle to get fit to represent his adopted nation of Spain. As mentioned earlier, Vicente Del Bosque is delaying his 23-man squad announcement for Costa's benefit.

Number of players at World Cup: 12

Fernandinho

David Silva

Jesus Navas

Alvaro Negredo

Yaya Toure

Joe Hart

James Milner

Martin Demichelis

Pablo Zabaleta

Sergio Aguero

Edin Dzeko

Vincent Kompany

Number of domestic players at World Cup: two

Some of the brightest prospects in Brazil lifted the Premier League trophy a few weeks ago. Hart and Milner are on England's plane; Demichelis, Zabaleta and Aguero have the potential to meet Brazil in the final for a South American showdown, and Kompany will be captaining dark horses Belgium. 

Yaya Toure, meanwhile, will be extremely perturbed if he is not given some kind of cake.

Number of players at World Cup: 12

David Luiz

Ramires

Oscar

Willian

Samuel Eto'o

Cesar Azpilicueta

Fernando Torres

Gary Cahill

Frank Lampard

Jon Obi Mikel

Andre Schurrle

Eden Hazard

Number of domestic players at World Cup: two

David Luiz's days as a Chelsea player may be numbered, but the bushy-haired defender is currently one of four stars who will be representing the home nation. 

The Blues are also lending Lampard and Cahill to the England setup, while Torres and Cesar "Dave" Azpilicueta should be among the defending champions.

Number of players at World Cup: 13

Henrique

Pepe Reina

Raul Albiol

Juan Camilo Zuniga

Christian Maggio

Lorenzo Insigne

Gokhan Inler

Valon Behrami

Blerim Dzemaili

Federico Fernandez

Gonzalo Higuain

Faouzi Ghoulam

Dries Mertens

Number of domestic players at World Cup: two

Napoli top scorer Gonzalo Higuain and his strike partner Dries Mertens have both earned call-ups to their respective nations, yet prolific striker Jose Callejon, who scored 20 goals in 2013-14, has never been considered for Spain's senior side. 

The Partenopei's presence is most strongly felt in the Switzerland squad, where Inler, Behrami and Dzemaili will all be available to try and help Hitzfeld's side battle their way out of Group E.

Number of players at World Cup: 13

Mauricio Isla

Arturo Vidal

Fernando Llorente

Gigi Buffon

Giorgio Chiellini

Andrea Barzagli

Leonardo Bonucci

Andrea Pirlo

Claudio Marchisio

Martin Caceres

Paul Pogba

Stephan Lichtsteiner

Kwadwo Asamoah

Number of domestic players at World Cup: six

Juventus are sending as many players to Brazil as their Serie A rivals Napoli, but considerably more Italians. The scudetto holders' back three of Chiellini, Bonucci and Barzagli should slot into Prandelli's back four, while the Azzurri's all-time appearance leader, Buffon, should be behind the back line.

In the middle of the park, Pirlo, the man with the greatest beard in all of football—and humanity—will direct traffic.

Number of players at World Cup: 13

Marcelo

Luka Modric

Iker Casillas

Daniel Carvajal

Sergio Ramos

Xabi Alonso

Raphael Varane

Karim Benzema

Angel Di Maria

Sami Khedira

Pepe

Fabio Coentrao

Cristiano Ronaldo

Number of domestic players at World Cup: four

Real Madrid played 61 games in all competitions this season and capped off a mixed campaign with the much-vaunted 10th European Cup. The downside of this continental success is that their Galacticos will have little respite before heading to Brazil, so La Liga top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo may not have his full quotient of energy.

This will be particularly true when the Portuguese star and his two countrymen, Pepe and Coentrao, face the humidity of Manaus in their second game.

Number of players at World Cup: 13

Dani Alves

Neymar

Alex Song

Alexis Sanchez

Gerard Pique

Jordi Alba

Xavi

Andres Iniesta

Cesc Fabregas

Sergio Busquets

Pedro

Javier Mascherano

Lionel Messi

Number of domestic players at World Cup: seven

In the past few international competitions, the Spanish national team have heartily embraced Barcelona's tiki-taka philosophy and false-nine tactics, so it is little surprise that the Blaugrana are supplying seven of Del Bosque's preliminary squad. 

Aside from the Spaniards, Barca also boast the two men who arguably have the biggest storylines at this tournament: Neymar and Messi. The former has the entire weight of Brazil upon his shoulders, while the latter will strive to cause an upset for their fierce South American rivals and hosts, simultaneously cementing his reputation as a legend of the game.

Number of players at World Cup: 14

Javier Hernandez

Robin van Persie

David De Gea

Juan Mata

Shinji Kagawa

Wayne Rooney

Danny Welbeck

Chris Smalling

Phil Jones

Antonio Valencia

Patrice Evra

Nani

Marouane Fellaini

Adnan Januzaj

Number of domestic players at World Cup: four

Manchester United endured a miserable season by their standards, and many have commented that their squad is past its prime. It may, therefore, come as a surprise to learn that the Red Devils are second in the World Cup rankings. 

After declaring his allegiance to Belgium, Januzaj will be looking to make his mark on the biggest stage, while Van Persie will seek to overcome a relatively disappointing campaign by helping the Netherlands exorcise the demons of Euro 2012. His sublime goal against Ecuador recently shows he is on the right track. 

Meanwhile, all eyes will also be on Wayne Rooney, who will be under immense pressure to prove to the world that he still has the fitness and ability to drive England deep into the competition. Incredibly, the 28-year-old is still seeking his first World Cup goal.

Number of players at World Cup: 15

Dante

Mario Mandzukic

Arjen Robben

Javi Martinez

Franck Ribery

Xherdan Shaqiri

Manuel Neuer

Philipp Lahm

Jerome Boateng

Bastian Schweinsteiger

Toni Kroos

Mario Gotze

Thomas Muller

Julian Green

Daniel van Buyten

Number of domestic players at World Cup: seven

With a squad that boasts 15 players worthy of the World Cup, it is little wonder that Bayern Munich are such a force to be reckoned with.

Die Roten will provide the backbone of Die Nationalmannschaft, with one of the world's best goalkeepers, Neuer, full-back and captain Philipp Lahm, midfield general Bastian Schweinsteiger and precocious forward Thomas Muller. 

Interestingly, the eight non-German World Cup players in their ranks each represent a different nation. Robben, Ribery and Mandzukic are likely to be key players for their respective countries. 

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