Lionel Messi (38 years) made history on Monday, becoming the all-time leading goalscorer in men’s FIFA World Cup history.
He broke the previous record of 16 goals by scoring his 17th and 18th tournament goals in the 38th and 90th+ minute of Argentina’s Group J match against Austria in Dallas.
The Record-Breaker: His historic 18th goal surpassed Germany’s Miroslav Klose, who had held the previous record of 16 goals since 2014.
Messi equaled the record with a stunning hat-trick in Argentina’s 3-0 opening victory against Algeria, before scoring two goals in the tournament during the clash with Austria. So far, he has scored all Argentina’s five goals in the 2026 edition.
Competing in his sixth World Cup, Messi is now the first men’s player ever to play in six editions of the tournament (2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022 and 2026).
See below Top All-Time World Cup Scorers
Messi now stands alone at the top of the global stage, leading a prestigious list of football legends:
*Lionel Messi (Argentina) – 18 goals
*Miroslav Klose (Germany) – 16 goals
*Ronaldo Nazário (Brazil) – 15 goals
*Gerd Müller (Germany) – 14 goals
*Kylian Mbappé (France) – 14 goals
