Lionel Messi broke the World Cup scoring record on Monday, June 22, 2026, and did it the hard way. After missing a penalty about a half hour earlier, he scored Argentina’s opening goal in the 38th minute against Austria, moving to 17 World Cup goals and past Miroslav Klose.
Messi and Miroslav Klose
The record had been tied at 16 before this match. That meant one clean finish would put Messi alone at the top of the men’s World Cup scoring list, and he delivered the moment Argentina needed with a left-footed chance that beat Alexander Schlager and gave his side a 1-0 lead.
For Messi’s scoring run with Miroslav Klose, the key point is the sequence, not just the total. He had already matched the former record holder before this World Cup Group J soccer match in Arlington, Texas, near Dallas, so every goal now changes the benchmark he is chasing and the one others will have to pass.
Argentina in Arlington
The finish also extended a run that has stretched across six consecutive World Cup games. By Monday, Messi had scored in each of those matches, turning one record-breaking goal into part of a longer stretch of production for Argentina.
Austria had a chance to change the script through Romano Schmid’s play, but Messi’s miss from the spot did not stop him from finding the first goal later. That split-second difference separated frustration from the record and left Argentina ahead before the match had reached the hour mark.
Two days before 39
The goal came two days before his 39th birthday, which makes the milestone harder to dismiss as a late-career footnote. He did not need a perfect start to make history; he needed one opening, and the 38th minute gave it to him.
Argentina’s lead gives the defending champion the more comfortable position inside the match, while Messi walks away from the first-half pressure with a number no men’s player has topped at the World Cup. The next step in the story is no longer whether he can catch the old mark, but how far he can push it from 17.
