Messi breaks World Cup’s all-time scoring record with 17th goal vs Austria
Key takeaways
- Messi is now the tournament's all-time and current edition's leading goalscorer with 17 and four goals respectively.
- The Argentinian captain reached the top of the charts on Monday when he swept home after 38 minutes in his team’s second group game, to deafening roars at Dallas Stadium in Arlington, Texas in the United States.
- Messi had equalled Miroslav Klose’s all-time mark of 16 World Cup goals by hitting a hat-trick in a 3-0 win over Algeria to open the South American nation’s title defence in North America last week.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
Messi is now the tournament's all-time and current edition's leading goalscorer with 17 and four goals respectively.
xwhatsapp-strokecopylinkgoogle Add Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Lionel Messi broke the record with Argentina's first goal against Austria at the Dallas Stadium in Texas in the US [Troy Taormina/Reuters]By AFPPublished On 22 Jun 202622 Jun 2026Lionel Messi has broken the record for the highest number of goals in the history of the FIFA World Cup after scoring his team’s opening goal in their Group J match against Austria, taking his tally to 17 goals in six football tournaments.
The Argentinian captain reached the top of the charts on Monday when he swept home after 38 minutes in his team’s second group game, to deafening roars at Dallas Stadium in Arlington, Texas in the United States.