Sunil Chhetri is India’s most capped player and its all-time leading goalscorer, with 95 goals in 157 matches. When he stepped away, only Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Ali Daei had scored more international goals in men’s football. He captained India for well over a decade, became the first footballer to receive the Khel Ratna and is the leading scorer in the history of the Indian Super League.
Name: Sunil Chhetri | Born: 3 August 1984, Secunderabad | Sport: Football | Position: Forward
A football family
Chhetri was born in Secunderabad into a family that already knew the game. His father played football for the Indian Army team and his mother played for the Nepal women’s national team. He started his senior career at Mohun Bagan in 2002, then moved on to JCT in Phagwara, where he began to score regularly.
The India debut
His first match for India came on 12 June 2005 against Pakistan, and he scored in a 1-1 draw. By 2007 he was a regular. India won the Nehru Cup that year and again in 2009, and in 2008 they won the AFC Challenge Cup, the title that sent them to the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar. He was AIFF Player of the Year for the first time in 2007.
Moves abroad
Chhetri tried his luck overseas twice. In 2010 he joined Kansas City Wizards in Major League Soccer, becoming one of very few Indians to sign for a club in the United States. In 2012 he went to Portugal with Sporting CP, playing for their B team. Between and after those spells he played in India for East Bengal, Dempo, Chirag United and Churchill Brothers, winning the I-League with Churchill on loan in 2012-13.
Captain and record-breaker
By the start of the 2010s he had taken over the captaincy from Bhaichung Bhutia, and India’s results came to depend heavily on his goals. He won the Nehru Cup again in 2012 and the SAFF Championship in 2011, 2015, 2021 and 2023. India also won the Intercontinental Cup in 2018 and 2023, and the Tri-Nation Series in 2023. He has scored four hat-tricks for India, the most recent against Pakistan at the 2023 SAFF Championship.
He received the Arjuna Award in 2011 and the Padma Shri in 2019. In 2021 he became the first footballer to be given the Khel Ratna. He has been named AIFF Player of the Year seven times, between 2007 and 2021-22.
Bengaluru FC
Chhetri joined Bengaluru FC in their first season, 2013-14, and has spent most of his club career there. The club won the I-League in 2013-14 and 2015-16, the Federation Cup in 2014-15 and 2016-17, the Super Cup in 2018 and the Indian Super League in 2018-19. They also reached the 2016 AFC Cup final and won the Durand Cup in 2022. A short spell with Mumbai City came in the ISL’s early years. On 7 December 2024 he scored a hat-trick against Kerala Blasters and became the oldest player to do so in the ISL.
Retirement, return and farewell
In May 2024 Chhetri announced that a World Cup qualifier against Kuwait in Kolkata on 6 June would be his last match for India. The game ended goalless. In March 2025, with India struggling in qualifying for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup, he came out of international retirement at the request of the national team set-up, and scored on his return.
The campaign did not end with qualification. India’s hopes were ended by a 2-1 defeat against Singapore in October 2025, and Chhetri then confirmed that his India career was over, saying his comeback had only been meant to help during the qualifiers. He finished with 95 goals for his country.
Career record and honours
- India: 157 caps, 95 goals (2005-2025); India’s most capped player and record scorer
- AFC Challenge Cup: winner 2008
- SAFF Championship: winner 2011, 2015, 2021 and 2023
- Nehru Cup: winner 2007, 2009 and 2012
- Intercontinental Cup: winner 2018 and 2023
- AFC Asian Cup: Qatar 2011, UAE 2019 and Qatar 2023
- Bengaluru FC: I-League 2013-14 and 2015-16; Federation Cup 2014-15 and 2016-17; Super Cup 2018; ISL 2018-19; Durand Cup 2022
- Indian Super League all-time top scorer
- AIFF Player of the Year seven times
- Arjuna Award (2011)
- Padma Shri (2019)
- Khel Ratna (2021)
