Fluminense’s Fabio levelled Peter Shilton’s longstanding record for most competitive appearances in men’s soccer on Saturday when he walked out onto the pitch for the 1,390th time in his team’s 2-1 win over Fortaleza in Brazil’s Serie A.
In a professional career spanning 28 years, goalkeeper Fabio, 44, has played senior games for Uniao Bandeirante (30), Vasco da Gama (150), Cruzeiro (976) and Fluminense (234).
The total, based on research by Fluminense, has been corroborated by Brazilian outlet Globo Esporte.
“God gave me this gift,” Fabio told Globo when asked about the record.
“I have to thank everyone who has been part of my life – my father, mother, sisters, friends, my wife… I try to be a good person. The important thing is to help my teammates. I am grateful, but without God nothing would be possible.
“These are difficult games and we are facing very strong teams. We are always striving to achieve our goals, which are the titles.”
Fabio will move past Shilton on Tuesday if he plays when Fluminense host Colombian side America de Cali in the second leg of their Copa Sudamericana round of 16 tie.
He is unlikely to stop there, however, given that he is a regular starter for Fluminense.
Former England goalkeeper Shilton acknowledged in 2023 that Fabio was inching closer towards breaking his record and said he would be the first to congratulate the Brazilian if he were to do so.
Shilton, who played between 1966 and 1997, is acknowledged as the record holder for the most competitive men’s professional games, though the total is disputed.
Guinness World Records and a number of statistics websites say the tally is 1,390 but Shilton himself, on his X feed, gives it as 1,387. The discrepancy comes from Guinness including 16 unofficial games that Shilton does not include, while he includes 13 games he played for England’s Under-23s team that normally are not counted.