Lionel Messi continues to expand his legacy. With a double against Austria on the second day of Group J of the 2026 World Cup, the Argentine captain reached 18 goals in World Cups and became the all-time top scorer in World Cups, surpassing the marks of Miroslav Klose and the Brazilian Marta Vieira da Silva.
The Argentine captain not only reached 18 goals in the history of the World Cups, but also consolidated his place as the absolute all-time top scorer, surpassing Miroslav Klose (16 goals) and the legendary Brazilian Marta (17 goals).
Furthermore, in just two games of the 2026 World Cup, the Argentine has already accumulated five goals, a figure that places him as the leader of the tournament’s scoring table. He is just two goals away from surpassing his own record of 7 goals in the previous World Cup in Qatar 2022.
According to Guinness World Records, Messi broke or expanded several records during the match:
- All-time top scorer in the men’s and women’s World Cups combined, with 18 goals.
- Most matches played in World Cups: 28.
- Most World Cup wins: 18.
- Most minutes played in World Cups: 2,489.
Marta’s record
Until before the 2026 World Cup, Marta Vieira da Silva held the absolute record for goals in World Cups with 17 scores, achieved in the Women’s World Cups held between 2003 and 2019.
Considered one of the best female soccer players in history and winner of six FIFA World Player of the Year awards, Marta held that mark for several years. Messi equaled the record with the hat trick against Algeria and surpassed it with the two goals scored against Austria.
A historic career
At almost 39 years old, Messi also became the first footballer to play in six World Cups. Throughout his World Cup career he has participated in Germany 2006, South Africa 2010, Brazil 2014, Russia 2018, Qatar 2022 and the United States-Mexico-Canada 2026.
Argentina leads Group J with six points and secured its qualification for the round of 16 after the first two days.
What seemed like an open statistical fight was quickly resolved. The footballer who debuted in a World Cup in Germany in 2006 now alone heads the competition’s all-time list of scorers.
The 2026 World Cup continues to add notable chapters to Messi’s career, who continues to expand a collection of records that places him among the most influential figures in the history of football.