Messi Breaks 9 Records in One Match, Becomes World Cup All-Time Top Scorer with 18 Goals

Messi Breaks 9 Records in One Match, Becomes World Cup All-Time Top Scorer with 18 Goals
By Zhang Ying, The Paper — June 23, 2026

Argentina defeated Austria 2-0, with Messi scoring one goal in each half, reaching 18 goals to top the World Cup all-time scoring list. In a single match, he challenged nine official World Cup historical records:

1. World Cup all-time top scorer: 18 goals, surpassing Klose's 16 goals.
2. World Cup all-time most wins: 18 wins, surpassing Klose's 17 wins.
3. Oldest player to score a brace: achieved at age 38.
4. World Cup all-time most appearances: 28 matches.
5. Direct goal involvement record: 26 goals (18 goals, 8 assists).
6. Consecutive goal-scoring matches record: scored in 6 consecutive World Cup matches.
7. World Cup all-time most minutes played: 2,484 minutes.
8. Most Man of the Match awards: 13 times.
9. Advanced from the group stage in all six World Cup appearances.