Lionel Messi breaks World Cup goals record against Austria
Lionel Messi established himself as the greatest scorer in World Cup history by scoring his 17th and 18th goals against Austria, surpassing Miroslav Klose's record.
The history of the World Cup has been rewritten. Lionel Messi cemented his legend as the greatest player of all time, adding the top scorer crown to his already impressive career. After scoring his first goal against Austria on June 22, Messi achieved his 17th goal in the World Cup, becoming the competition's goals leader. He surpassed the record previously held by German Miroslav Klose, now with 18 goals. The record for goals in a World Cup tournament belonged to the legendary Marta, from the Brazilian women's team, who had 17 goals; Messi equaled her by scoring his first goal against Austria and then broke the record with his second, in stoppage time. Now, he stands alone as the top scorer in World Cup history.
Messi became just the third player to score in six consecutive World Cups, joining Just Fontaine (France) and Jairzinho (Brazil). The first goal came in the 38th minute at Dallas Stadium, with a firm touch from a Facundo Medina pass that ended up in the bottom left corner, past Austrian goalkeeper Alexander Schlager. And then, Messi scored again against Austria in the 95th minute, breaking the tie with Marta. A deflected shot returned to Messi, whose first shot was blocked, but he managed to score on the second, showing his insane determination to give Argentina a 2-0 lead in a match they would eventually win.
Messi has participated in every World Cup since 2006 and scored in all but one edition, in 2010. He scored seven goals during Argentina's 2022 World Cup campaign and has added four more in 2026, continuing to build on his record. After making history, Messi has firmly established himself as the sport's undisputed greatest of all time, while another rising star, Frenchman Kylian Mbappé, is gradually building an impressive World Cup CV alongside him. At 27 years old, Mbappé already occupies fourth place on the competition's top scorers list with 14 goals. He is also on track to surpass Klose's record, possibly at this World Cup. Mbappé has already scored 14 goals in just 15 World Cup matches, including four as a 19-year-old during France's 2018 title campaign. He followed that performance with eight goals in 2022, making him the tournament's top scorer, highlighting himself with a hat-trick in the final against Argentina. Mbappé made a name for himself by recording the second hat-trick ever recorded in a World Cup final. Messi may hold the record today, but Mbappé is quickly closing the gap and looks set to challenge him in the years to come. The race for World Cup history is far from over and could rise to prominence again if France and Argentina meet in another World Cup final.
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