Ecuador's Ivan Hurtado brings to an end his World Cup adventure.

World Cup qualification can seem like a long, drawn out affair at times. Two, sometimes three years in the making, the hard slog to the Finals can seem like a never-ending merry-go-round.

Spare a thought for Ivan Hurtado of Ecuador, then, who played in a whopping 68 qualifying games during his career – the most of any player in history.

He did reap reward for his efforts, however, playing in the 2002 and 2006 World Cups – captaining the team in the latter.

Hurtado hung up his boots after Ecuador tried (unsuccessfully) to qualify for South Africa 2010 with an incredible 163 international caps under his belt.