Unai Simon Closes In on World Cup Clean Sheet Record as Spain Reach Final

North America (GNP): Spain goalkeeper Unai Simon has emerged as one of the most efficient shot-stoppers in FIFA World Cup history, sitting joint third on the all-time list for clean sheets after keeping eight shutouts in just 11 tournament appearances, according to updated FIFA figures released following matches played on July 14, 2026.

Simon’s record stands out for its efficiency rather than volume. His clean sheet rate of 0.73 per game is the highest among all goalkeepers on the list, well ahead of the two players tied for the outright record, France’s Fabien Barthez and England’s Peter Shilton, who each recorded 10 clean sheets in 17 appearances for a rate of 0.59 per game. Simon has conceded just four goals across his 11 World Cup matches, a goals-against average of 0.36 per game, the lowest figure among the 14 goalkeepers featured on the list.

Simon’s tally spans two tournaments, with two clean sheets in four appearances at the 2022 World Cup and six clean sheets in seven appearances during Spain’s run through the 2026 tournament. With Spain having advanced to the World Cup final, Simon has the opportunity to add to his total and potentially move above the group tied for third or challenge the joint record held by Barthez and Shilton.

Barthez and Shilton remain alone at the top of the all-time list. Barthez’s 10 clean sheets came across three tournaments for France, including five shutouts in seven appearances during France’s title-winning 1998 campaign, one clean sheet in three appearances in 2002, and four clean sheets in seven appearances in 2006. Shilton’s identical tally for England was built over the 1982, 1986 and 1990 tournaments, with four clean sheets in five appearances in 1982 forming the core of his record, though his overall goals-against average of 0.59 per game is higher than Barthez’s 0.47.

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Simon shares third place with six other goalkeepers on eight clean sheets apiece: the Netherlands’ Jan Jongbloed, Brazil’s Leao, West Germany’s Sepp Maier, Brazil’s Taffarel, Belgium’s Thibaut Courtois and France’s Hugo Lloris. Among this group, Jongbloed posted the best clean sheet rate at 0.67 per game across the 1974 and 1978 tournaments, while Courtois and Lloris required considerably more appearances, 21 and 20 respectively, to reach the same total, giving them lower rates of 0.38 and 0.40 per game.

A third tier of five goalkeepers is tied at seven clean sheets each: Brazil’s Alisson and Gilmar, Spain’s Iker Casillas, Uruguay’s Fernando Muslera, and Germany’s Manuel Neuer. Neuer required the most appearances of any goalkeeper on the entire list to reach his total, playing 23 World Cup matches for seven clean sheets, a rate of 0.30 per game, the lowest among all 14 players listed.

The figures underline the extent to which Spain’s run to the 2026 final has been built on defensive solidity, with Simon conceding sparingly through the knockout rounds. Should Spain go on to win the tournament, his performance would place him among the most statistically efficient goalkeepers in World Cup history, based on clean sheets recorded per appearance.