Lionel Messi scored twice against Austria in Dallas on 22 June to become the all-time leading scorer in World Cup history, surpassing both Miroslav Klose’s men’s record and Marta’s overall mark, as Argentina sealed a 2-0 victory and booked their place in the knockout stage. The occasion fell on the 40th anniversary of Diego Maradona’s Hand of God and Goal of the Century against England at the 1986 World Cup, a fitting backdrop for the man who has long since stepped out of his predecessor’s shadow.
Here is every record Messi broke or extended on a historic night in Texas.
All-time World Cup leading scorer
Messi’s 38th-minute finish, sweeping home Facundo Medina’s left-side cross after Thiago Almada’s sublime dummy, was his 17th World Cup goal, moving him level with and then past Klose’s long-standing men’s record. His second, prodded home from close range in stoppage time after Julian Alvarez’s effort was saved into his path by goalkeeper Alexander Schlager, took the tally to 18, two clear of the German. He has scored those 18 goals across five World Cups, 14 with his left foot and four with his right, with five coming from outside the box against 13 different nations.
Surpassing Marta’s all-time record
Lionel Messi’s historic brace against Austria took him past Marta’s long-standing mark of 17 World Cup goals, moving him to the top of the all-time scoring charts across both men’s and women’s tournaments. His 18th World Cup goal set a new outright record, surpassing the previous benchmark held by the Brazilian legend.
Six consecutive World Cup matches scored in
Messi became only the third player in World Cup history to score in six successive appearances at the tournament, joining France’s Just Fontaine, who achieved the feat in a single tournament in 1958, and Brazil’s Jairzinho in 1970. Messi’s run stretches back to the 2022 World Cup triumph in Qatar.
Most penalties taken and missed at a World Cup
In the ninth minute, Messi dragged a spot kick wide of the left post after VAR awarded Argentina a penalty, a casual effort that drew celebrations from Austria goalkeeper Schlager. It was his third missed penalty at a World Cup, the most by any player in tournament history, taking him ahead of former Ghana striker Asamoah Gyan on two. He has now taken seven and missed three at World Cups, also the most spot kicks attempted in the competition’s history. Remarkably, this was also the first time he has scored for Argentina in a competitive match despite missing a penalty in the same game.
Five goals in two matches
Messi’s brace against Austria followed his hat-trick in the opening 3-0 win over Algeria, giving him five goals in two matches and placing him clear at the top of the 2026 Golden Boot standings. Only Kylian Mbappe has scored two or more goals in more different World Cup matches than Messi, who has now done so on four occasions.
Argentina’s best start in 28 years
The win was Argentina’s second in two Group J matches without conceding a goal, the first time they have won their opening two World Cup games without shipping a goal since 1998. Since losing to Saudi Arabia in their 2022 group opener, they have gone eight World Cup games unbeaten, with six wins and two draws, while Austria managed just one shot on target across 90 minutes.
Argentina will face the Group H runner-up in Miami on 3 July if they finish top of Group J, a scenario that will be confirmed if Jordan fail to beat Algeria. Austria, second in the group, face Algeria in a decisive final group match.
