Argentina captain Lionel Messi tied the men's World Cup scoring record by netting a hat trick against Algeria on Tuesday, June 16, 2026, in Kansas City.
The 38-year-old forward scored three times in the group stage match to reach 16 career World Cup goals, matching the record held by Germany's Miroslav Klose, according to usatoday.
com.
The match also marked Messi's 200th international appearance for Argentina, making him the first male player to officially feature in six different World Cup tournaments, as reported by zeit.
de.
Messi, who plays for Inter Miami in Major League Soccer, made his World Cup debut exactly 20 years ago in 2006 against Serbia and Montenegro.
According to sports. yahoo.
com, Messi's performance set multiple records: he became the oldest player to score a hat trick in a World Cup match and the player with the most tournament appearances at 27 games.
Meanwhile, French forward Kylian Mbappe scored twice against Senegal earlier that day, bringing his total to 14 World Cup goals, according to usatoday.
com.
Messi will have the chance to take sole possession of the scoring record when Argentina faces Austria on Monday, June 22, 2026.
