In Mexico on Sunday, the 2025 Torneo Apertura final between Toluca and Tigres was decided by the longest penalty shootout in Liga MX history, with 24 spot kicks taken. But that marathon was still not even half as long as the world record for the longest shootout.
Toluca won the Apertura title after beating Tigres 9-8 on penalties, with 17 scored and seven missed in the shootout which went on for so long that the two goalkeepers were each required to take shots. Of those seven failed attempts, three were saved, three went over the bar, and one hit the post.
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With 24 shots, equivalent to 12 rounds, the final surpassed the previous Liga MX record of 16 spot kicks, set in the Puebla vs. Chivas final of the 1982-83 season.
But the world record? Not even close.
What is the longest penalty shootout in soccer history?
The world record stands at an incredible 56 shots.
It was set in May 2024, in the semifinal of Israel's third-tier Liga Alef South between F.C. Dimona and Shimshon Tel Aviv, after the postseason playoff match produced a 2-2 draw after extra time.
The subsequent shootout went on for so long that every single player had to take at least two penalties, with half of each team's players required to take a third spot kick before Dimona beat Shimshon 23-22.
That shootout beat the previous record of 54 penalties, which was set in England in March 2022 when Washington beat fellow non-league club Bedlington 25-24 in a first-round match of the Ernest Armstrong Memorial Cup.
According to the BBC, the match had an attendance of 40 spectators, meaning there were more penalties taken in the shootout than there were people watching it.
