Lionel Messi has officially broken Miroslav Klose’s legendary record, claiming the sole spot as the all-time top scorer in World Cup history after netting a brilliant brace against Austria.
The Argentine maestro, who had previously net a spectacular hat-trick against Algeria, started the match against Austria by uncharacteristically missing a penalty. However, in the 39th minute, the 38-year-old legend redeemed himself in spectacular fashion. Scoring Argentina’s opening goal, Messi broke his tie with German legend Miroslav Klose to stand alone at the top of the World Cup scoring charts.
How the Historic Goal Happened
Messi received the ball inside the penalty box and unleashed an unstoppable, trademark left-footed strike past Austrian goalkeeper Alexander Schlager, rewriting football history once again.
Lionel Messi’s 17 World Cup Goals Breakdown:
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2006 Germany: 1 goal
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2014 Brazil: 4 goals
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2018 Russia: 1 goal
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2022 Qatar: 7 goals
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2026 USA, Canada, & Mexico: 4 goals (Current tournament top scorer)
As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words…
التاريخ يُكتب من جديد… ميسي يصبح الهداف التاريخي لكأس العالم! 🐐🇦🇷
📹⚽️ شاهد الهدف التاريخي#كأس_العالم2026 | #مونديال2026 | #كأس_العالم | #ميسي | #الأرجنتين #beINWC26 | #FIFAWorldCup2026 | #FIFAWorldCup | #Messi | #Argentina pic.twitter.com/gNQGu0AlMy
— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS) June 22, 2026
In the final minute of the game, “The Flea” scored his second goal of the night, raising his total World Cup goals to 19. With this milestone, Messi widens the gap to 4 goals ahead of his closest active rival, Kylian Mbappé.
