Messi at 38: The All-Time World Cup Scoring Record Is Now His
Five goals, a hat trick in the opener, and a record that now belongs to him alone. Lionel Messi is writing the last chapter exactly the way you'd want him to.
There is a version of a farewell tour where the legend shows up, waves, plays sixty quiet minutes, and lets everyone clap. Lionel Messi decided to do the other kind.
In Argentina's opener against Algeria, the defending champions' captain scored a hat trick. A few days later he added two more against Austria. That is five goals in the group stage at 38 years old — and somewhere in there, almost casually, he passed every player in the history of the tournament.
The number that says it all: 18
Messi's career World Cup goal total now sits at 18 — the most any player, man or woman, has ever scored across World Cup history. He did not need this record to be remembered. He went and got it anyway, in what is almost certainly his final World Cup, while leading the scoring charts of the whole tournament.
Argentina look the part again
It is not just Messi. Argentina topped Group J and arrive in the knockouts with the look of a team that knows how to win this thing — because three years ago, they did. The 2022 champions have the calm of a side that has already climbed the mountain once and is in no hurry.
For the newcomers
If 2026 is your first World Cup, here is why people get emotional about this one: Messi is widely considered the greatest player of his generation, he finally won the trophy in 2022 after years of near-misses, and this is the goodbye. Watching him lead the scoring charts at 38 is the soccer equivalent of catching a legend's encore — the songs you hoped they'd play, played one more time.
The knockouts are where it gets heavy. But if you are picking a reason to tune in, "the greatest goalscorer the tournament has ever seen, in his final act" is a pretty good one.
Figures as of June 24, 2026, group stage. Sources: ESPN, NBC Sports.