Milutinović is regarded as one of the most talented players in his country's history, being nicknamed Plava čigra (The Blond Buzzer) for his skills.

In the 1955–56 season, he scored two goals in the first ever European Champion Clubs' Cup match, a 3–3 draw between FK Partizan and Sporting Clube de Portugal, then scored four goals in the return leg which Partizan won 5–2 in Belgrade.

In total, he played 213 matches and scored 231 goals[1] for FK Partizan, winning two national cups (1954 and 1957).

Milutinović earned 33 caps in total[2] and represented the country in the 1954 and 1958 World Cups.

In a 2006 interview, his former team-mate Dragoslav Šekularac said that "Miloš Milutinović as a player was a 9/10 and as a man was a 29/10.