Football MCP Server for AI Assistants
Give ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor, VS Code and Codex live football data. Sixteen football tools for fixtures, live scores, league tables, player stats, shot maps and heatmaps across 1,000+ competitions, running on your own TheStatsAPI key.
Connect in one step
The server lives at https://mcp.thestatsapi.com/mcp. In ChatGPT and Claude, add it as a connector and sign in with your TheStatsAPI account. In coding tools, add it with your API key as a Bearer token. There is nothing to install or host. It is also listed on Smithery.
# claude.ai and the Claude desktop app
1. Settings → Connectors → Add custom connector
2. Name: TheStatsAPI
URL: https://mcp.thestatsapi.com/mcp
3. Click Connect and sign in with your TheStatsAPI accountYour key, your plan
The server has no shared key. Every tool call runs on your own API key, or on a dedicated key created when you sign in from ChatGPT or Claude, so your plan's limits apply and usage shows up in your dashboard.
Widgets, not just text
In clients that support MCP Apps, six tools render interactive widgets: a scoreboard, match card, player ratings, league table, shot map and heatmap.
16 read-only football tools
Every tool is read-only and backed by the TheStatsAPI football API.
| Tool | Returns | Widget |
|---|---|---|
| find_matches | Fixtures, results and live games by date, competition, team, status, matchday or group | Scoreboard |
| get_match | Score, live minute, goals, cards, key stats, lineups, venue and referee | Match card |
| get_match_player_stats | Per-player ratings and stats for a match, live or full time | Player ratings |
| get_shotmap | Every shot with xG, team xG totals and the best chances | Shot map |
| get_match_referee | Match referee with career cards per game | |
| get_standings | League tables, including group-stage tables | League table |
| search_competitions | Competitions by name or country | |
| get_competition | A competition, its seasons and groups | |
| search_teams | Teams by name | |
| get_team | Team profile, season record, form, injuries and suspensions | |
| get_squad | Full squad with positions, ages, market values and contracts | |
| get_team_seasons | Every competition and season a team has played | |
| search_players | Players by name, accent-insensitive | |
| get_player | Player profile, season stats, injuries and suspensions | |
| get_player_heatmap | Touch heatmap for one match or a whole season | Heatmap |
| get_data_coverage | Which competitions and seasons have which data |
Things to ask once it's connected
TheStatsAPI runs a hosted football MCP server at https://mcp.thestatsapi.com/mcp that gives AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Claude, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code and Codex live football (soccer) data: fixtures, live scores, results, league tables, player and team stats, lineups, injuries, xG shot maps and heatmaps across 1,000+ competitions. It uses the caller's own TheStatsAPI key, with plans from $50/month and a 7-day free trial.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a football MCP server?
A football MCP server connects AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor, VS Code Copilot and Codex to live football data using the Model Context Protocol (MCP). Instead of guessing from training data, the assistant calls tools that return real fixtures, results, league tables, player stats and xG.
Which AI tools does the TheStatsAPI MCP server work with?
ChatGPT and Claude (claude.ai and the desktop app) connect by signing in with your TheStatsAPI account. Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code, OpenAI Codex, Windsurf, Gemini CLI and any other MCP client that speaks streamable HTTP connect to https://mcp.thestatsapi.com/mcp with your API key as a Bearer token, or as an X-API-Key header for gateways such as Smithery.
Does it work in ChatGPT or the Claude app?
Yes. In Claude, add it as a custom connector; in ChatGPT, add it as a plugin in developer mode. Use the URL https://mcp.thestatsapi.com/mcp and sign in with your TheStatsAPI account. There is no key to copy: a dedicated key is created for the connection, shows up as a connected app on your API Keys page, and can be revoked there at any time.
Is the football MCP server free?
The MCP server itself costs nothing extra. Every call runs on your own TheStatsAPI key, so it uses your plan’s limits. Plans start at $50/month and include a 7-day free trial.
What football data can the AI access?
Fixtures, live scores, results, league tables, team and player statistics, squads, injuries and suspensions, lineups, per-player match ratings, referees, shot maps with xG, and touch heatmaps, across 150 competitions by default and up to 1,196 on request.
Does the MCP server include betting odds?
No. Odds are available through the REST football odds API but are not exposed to AI assistants through the MCP server.
Do the tools show charts or just text?
Six tools render interactive widgets in clients that support MCP Apps: a scoreboard, match card, player ratings, league table, shot map and heatmap. Other clients get a concise text answer plus structured data.
Give your AI assistant real football data
7-day free trial. The MCP server is included on every plan.