The largest winning margin in a World Cup match is 9 goals. The record was set when Hungary defeated El Salvador 10–1 in Elche, Spain, on 15 June 1982.
That result produced a goal difference of plus nine: Hungary scored 10 and El Salvador scored one. It remains the only match in men’s World Cup finals history in which a team scored double figures. Hungary led 3–0 at half-time and added seven more goals after the interval, although El Salvador briefly pulled one back.
The nine-goal margin is shared by three matches. Hungary also beat South Korea 9–0 in 1954, while Yugoslavia defeated Zaire by the same score in 1974. Thus, 10–1 is the largest scoreline by goals scored, but its winning margin is nine, not ten.
The 1982 match also produced another record: Hungary’s László Kiss became the only substitute to score a World Cup hat-trick, completing it in seven minutes.