With a hat-trick in Argentina's 3-0 victory over Algeria in their opening match, Lionel Messi equaled Miroslav Klose's all-time World Cup scoring record (16 goals).
It is highly likely that Messi himself will break this record when Argentina faces Austria in their second match of Group J on June 23rd. This is also considered an unprecedented record and will be very difficult to break in the most exciting tournament on the planet.
Messi will set even more impressive records if he scores against Austria at the 2026 World Cup (Photo: Getty).
Messi's hat-trick against Algeria was also his first World Cup hat-trick. At the age of 38 years and 357 days, Messi broke Cristiano Ronaldo's record (33 years and 130 days) for the oldest player to score a hat-trick at the World Cup.
Algeria became the 11th team Messi has scored against at the World Cup, and no other player has scored against more different national teams than the Argentine superstar in the history of the tournament.
Messi also set a record as the oldest player to score two or more goals in a World Cup match, and became the oldest goalscorer for Argentina at the World Cup (he was also the youngest ever to score, at just 18 years and 357 days old).
Messi has scored in five consecutive World Cup matches since 2022, and the game against Austria is an opportunity for him to equal the World Cup record jointly held by Just Fontaine (France) and Jairzinho (Brazil) (6 consecutive matches). Currently, Messi is the first Argentinian player to score in five consecutive World Cup matches, surpassing Hernan Crespo and Guillermo Stabile (each with 4 matches).
According to statistics, Messi has scored his fifth World Cup goal from outside the penalty area, thus equaling the record of Brazilian Rivellino for the most goals scored from outside the box in the last 60 years.
Rivelino scored five goals from outside the penalty area in the 1970 and 1974 World Cups. He scored against Czechoslovakia, Peru, Uruguay, Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo), and East Germany.
Meanwhile, Messi achieved this record with goals against Bosnia, Iran, and Nigeria at the 2014 World Cup, against Mexico at the 2022 tournament in Qatar, and most recently against Algeria.
Messi also played his 200th international match, becoming the first South American player and the third in the world to reach this milestone.
Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/nhieu-ky-luc-an-tuong-cho-doi-messi-tai-world-cup-2026-20260621075746504.htm
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