Messi breaks World Cup scoring record with two goals
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- Lionel Messi scored his 17th and 18th career World Cup goals against Austria, first breaking Miroslav Klose's all-time men's record in the 38th minute, then surpassing Brazil's Marta in stoppage time to claim the overall mark across men's and women's tournaments.
- Messi missed a first-half penalty that would have given him the record earlier, sending the shot wide and leaving the 70,000-strong crowd at Dallas Stadium stunned before he recovered to break the record in open play.
- The record-breaking strike came exactly 40 years to the day after Diego Maradona's 'Hand of God' goal and nearly 20 years after Messi's first World Cup goal in 2006 against Serbia & Montenegro.
- Argentina secured their place in the Round of 32 with a 2-0 win — their second victory in two group matches — with Messi having scored all five of the team's goals in the tournament.
- Messi is playing in a record sixth World Cup at age 38; 12 of his 18 international goals have come after he turned 35, and he leads the 2026 Golden Boot standings three days before turning 39.
- Coach Lionel Scaloni credited Messi's intensity for lifting the team after the missed penalty, with teammates Leandro Paredes and Lisandro Martínez calling his performance 'impressive' in the mixed zone.
Why it matters: Argentina have clinched advancement to the knockout rounds as defending champions, carried entirely by a 38-year-old Messi who has scored all five of their goals. He now holds the all-time World Cup scoring record across both genders and leads the Golden Boot race, reinforcing his status as the tournament's central figure in 2026.
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