Lionel Messi continued rewriting the World Cup record books by scoring his 19th goal in the tournament. Coming onto the pitch in the 61st minute of the match against Jordan, the Argentina captain found the net with a free-kick, adding another milestone to his illustrious international career.
That strike also established a new record for the longest scoring sequence in World Cup matches. Messi has now scored in seven consecutive appearances, moving ahead of Just Fontaine and Jairzinho, who each found the net in six straight games.
Fontaine achieved his run during the 1958 tournament, finishing with 13 goals, a record for a single edition that still stands. Jairzinho matched six consecutive scoring matches while helping Brazil win the 1970 World Cup.
Remarkable consistency across tournaments
Messi’s current streak began at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where he scored against Australia in the round of 16, the Netherlands in the quarterfinals, Croatia in the semifinals, and France in the final.
Before the 2026 tournament began, he had already accumulated 21 direct goal contributions at the World Cup through 13 goals and eight assists, matching Pelé’s total of 12 goals and nine assists recorded between 1958 and 1970. During the current competition, Messi increased his goal tally by scoring three times against Algeria, twice against Austria, and once more in this latest match, moving to 19 World Cup goals.
He also reached another landmark by making his 29th appearance at the tournament, more than any other player. In addition, he now holds the record for the most World Cup victories with 19 and shares with Cristiano Ronaldo the distinction of appearing on the field at six different editions of the competition. Guillermo Ochoa was also selected for six World Cups but did not play in the 2006 and 2010 tournaments.
Records in every stage of the competition
Messi remains the only footballer to score in every stage of a World Cup under the current format that includes a round of 16. He completed that feat in Qatar by scoring during the group phase against Saudi Arabia and Mexico before finding the net in every knockout match on Argentina’s route to the title. His only scoreless game came against Poland in the final group fixture.
Fontaine and Jairzinho also scored in every stage of the tournaments they played in, although those editions moved directly from the group stage to the quarter-finals without a round of 16.
Golden Boot within reach
Messi finished the group stage of the 2026 World Cup as the tournament’s leading scorer and now heads into the knockout rounds aiming to win the Golden Boot for the first time in his career.
He narrowly missed out on that award in Qatar after scoring seven goals, finishing one behind Kylian Mbappé. Only two Argentina players have previously claimed the World Cup Golden Boot: Guillermo Stábile, who scored eight times in 1930, and Mario Kempes, whose six goals helped Argentina win the title in 1978.
Across his six World Cup appearances, Messi has scored once in 2006, four times in 2014, once in 2018, seven goals in 2022, and six so far in 2026. The only tournament in which he failed to score was the 2010 World Cup.