Falcao took part in the 2005 South American U-20 Championship which was held in his home country of Colombia. He won the tournament as well. On 3 June 2007, Falcao scored his first goal for the national team against Montenegro. He scored the only goal of that game. On 11 October 2013, he scored 2 penalties against Chile to help tie the match at 3-3 after losing 3-0. This result meant Colombia qualified for the World Cup for the first time since 1998. Falcao missed the 2014 World Cup because he was injured, but played in the 2018 World Cup and scored a goal against Poland. On 7 June 2017, Falcao became the Colombian national team top scorer, after scoring his 26th goal in a 2–2 draw with Spain.