Luka Modrić joins Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi, Al-Mutawa in 200+ caps club

Luka Modrić has done something only three other men in the history of football have managed. The 40-year-old Croatian captain earned his 200th international cap in June 2026, joining Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, and Kuwait’s Bader Al-Mutawa in one of sport’s most exclusive clubs.

The 200-cap club, explained

Cristiano Ronaldo leads the pack with well over 200 caps for Portugal. Messi has crossed the threshold with Argentina. Bader Al-Mutawa accumulated 202 appearances for Kuwait before Ronaldo eventually surpassed his all-time record.

The milestone came during international fixtures around June 23, 2026, with matches taking place in Toronto.

Two decades of Croatian excellence

Modrić’s international career began in 2006. The crown jewel was the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Croatia, a country of roughly 4 million people, reached the final. They lost to France, but the tournament cemented Modrić’s reputation as one of the greatest midfielders ever to play the game. He won the Golden Ball as the tournament’s best player, and later that year, he took home the Ballon d’Or, breaking the Messi-Ronaldo duopoly that had dominated the award for over a decade.

What longevity really means in modern football

At 40, he is still captaining Croatia and earning starts, not riding the bench as a ceremonial inclusion. There is a difference between accumulating caps through late-game substitution appearances and being integral to your team’s setup for two full decades.

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