The men’s Scotland international team has a long and proud history in the beautiful game. Although they haven’t always enjoyed the best of fortunes, some players have thrived, especially in front of goal.
However, who has been the most prolific player in the history of the Scottish national team?
Dennis Law (30 goals scored in 55 appearances for Scotland from 1958–1974)
The forward was quite simply a legend of the Scottish game, enjoying a 16-year career with the country’s national team. He scored a respectable 30 goals in 55 appearances for Scotland.
Law only appeared in one international tournament with Scotland, making just one appearance at the 1974 World Cup. His only game at that World Cup, a 2-0 win over Zaire, was the forward’s last-ever appearance in a Scotland shirt.
The former Manchester United and Manchester City star picked up several international honours in his career. He joined the Scottish FA International Roll of Honour in 1988 while being inducted into the Scottish Hall of Fame in 2004.
Kenny Dalglish (30 goals scored in 102 appearances for Scotland from 1971–1986)
Like Law, the Liverpool icon also scored 30 international goals over a 15-year career, but it took him over 102 appearances for his national team to match his former international teammate’s goal tally.
Dalglish made his international debut in 1971 against Belgium in a European Championships qualifier.
The forward appeared in two World Cups in 1978 and 1982. In the ’78 edition, Dalglish scored a goal in Scotland’s famous 3-2 World Cup win over the Netherlands while scoring against New Zealand in ’82. He was also picked for Scotland’s squad for the 1986 World Cup, but he had to withdraw due to injury.
Dalglish’s last appearance in a Scotland shirt was in a Euro 1988 qualifier, in which his team recorded a 3-0 victory.
The former Celtic star was inducted into the Scottish Football Hall of Fame in 2004.
Hughie Gallacher (24 goals scored in 20 appearances for Scotland from 1924–1935)
The former Newcastle hero is the player with the second-best goals-per-game ratio of any of the players on our list, scoring 24 goals in just 20 international appearances.
Having played in an era when players didn’t play as many games, Gallacher’s record is highly impressive. The forward helped Scotland to win the now-defunct British Home Championship on five occasions in 1924/25, 1925/26, 1926/27, 1928/29 and 1934/35.
Lawrie Reilly (22 goals scored in 38 appearances for Scotland from 1948–1957)
Like Gallacher, Reilly played in an era where there were not as many international games as in the modern era. The striker, who spent his whole club career with Hibernian, was prolific at international level with Scotland, scoring 22 goals in just 38 appearances in a nine-year career.
Although Scotland qualified for the 1950 World Cup, the SFA denied the team entry to the tournament because they had failed to win the British Home Championship.
Unfortunately, Reilly also missed out on playing in the 1954 edition with Scotland due to illness.
Ally McCoist (19 goals scored in 61appearances for Scotland from 1986–1998)
The popular former Rangers striker enjoyed a 12-year international career from 1986 until 1998, scoring a respectable 19 goals in 61 appearances.
McCoist appeared in several international tournaments with Scotland. He made a start and two substitute appearances in the 1990 World Cup in Italy.
The forward once again featured for his country at Euro92’, and then Euro96’ where he scored once against Switzerland in the group stages of the competition. The goal turned out to be his last for his national team.
The forward was overlooked for the World Cup in 1998. He has since stated that he was devastated at his omission from the squad.
During his career, McCoist won the SFWA Footballer of the Year and the SPFA Players’ Player of the Year in season 1991/92, while in 1996, he joined the Scotland national football team’s roll of honour.
John McGinn (18 goals scored in 71 appearances for Scotland from 2016-present)
The midfielder has enjoyed a respectable goalscoring record from the centre of the park during his club and international career, scoring 18 goals in 71 international appearances at the time of writing.
McGinn has represented Scotland at the European Championships in 2020 and also 2024. McGinn thrived in qualifying for Euro2020 in particular, as he scored seven goals in the qualification campaign to help his team book their place in the competition finals.
The midfielder was named the SFWA International Player of the Year in seasons 2019/20, 2020/21, 2021/22 and 2022/23.
Kenny Miller (18 goals scored in 69 appearances for Scotland from 2001–2013)
One of that rare breed of players who have played for both of the old firm Celtic and Rangers in the modern era, Miller enjoyed a 12-year career at international level, netting 18 goals in his 69 appearances.
He made his international debut in April 2001 as a substitute in a 1-1 draw against Poland in a friendly.
The forward’s last appearance in a Scotland shirt came in a 3-2 defeat against old enemy England, a game in which he scored and shortly afterwards retired from the international team.
In 2010, he joined the Scottish FA International Roll of Honour in recognition of winning 50 caps.
Robert Hamilton (15 goals in 11 appearances for Scotland from 1899–1911)
Hamilton is the player with the best goal-per-game ratio of any of the players on our list, having scored 15 goals in just 11 appearances for his national team.
The former Rangers and Hearts forward’s best outing in a Scotland shirt was when he scored four times in an 11-0 victory over Ireland in Glasgow in 1901. The win remains Scotland’s record victory.
James McFadden (15 goals in 48 appearances for Scotland from 2002–2010)
The former Motherwell and Everton star scored 15 goals in his eight-year international career from 2002 until 2010.
McFadden’s most famous moment and goal for Scotland was a brilliant 30-yard effort in a 1-0 win over France in Paris during Euro2008 qualifying. However, ultimately, the goal meant very little as Scotland failed to qualify for the competition.
While McFadden never appeared in a major international competition with Scotland, he won the SFWA International Player of the Year in 2007.
Maurice (Mo) Johnston (14 goals in 38 appearances for Scotland from 1984–1992)
Johnston enjoyed an eight-year international career with Scotland from 1984 until 1992, scoring 14 goals in 38 appearances for his national team.
The former Everton player made his international debut in 1984. He was expected to be included in the 1986 World Cup squad. However, Scotland caretaker manager Sir Alex Ferguson decided to omit him from the squad after an off-the-field incident prior to the start of the competition.
Johnston returned to the Scotland set-up for the next World Cup, where he featured in all three group games, scoring once against Sweden.
He retired from the international game shortly after the 1990 World Cup but then briefly returned to the national team in 1991. However, he did finally call time on his international career permanently in 1992.
