Lionel Messi continued his remarkable 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign by breaking yet another long-standing record during Argentina’s dramatic 3-2 comeback victory over Egypt in the Round of 16.
The Argentina captain found the net against the Pharaohs to extend his extraordinary scoring streak, making it five consecutive matches with a goal at the 2026 tournament.
Combined with his final four matches at the 2022 World Cup, Messi has now scored in nine straight World Cup appearances—setting a new FIFA World Cup record after previously equalling the mark against Austria.
The historic goal also saw the 39-year-old icon match a legendary milestone that had stood since the inaugural World Cup in 1930.
Messi’s eighth goal of the 2026 tournament drew him level with Argentine great Guillermo Stábile for the most goals scored by an Argentina player at a single FIFA World Cup.
While Stábile established the record nearly a century ago in a tournament featuring fewer matches, both legendary forwards incredibly reached the eight-goal mark in just five games.
Messi opened his 2026 account with back-to-back hat-tricks against Algeria and Austria, followed by crucial strikes against Jordan, Cape Verde, and now Egypt.
In finding the back of the net against Egypt, Messi added another nation to his ever-growing list of World Cup victims.
No player in football history has scored against more different national teams on the game’s biggest stage than the Argentine captain, with the Pharaohs becoming the latest side to concede to his brilliance.
Furthermore, the goal strengthened Messi’s position as the competition’s all-time leading scorer, elevating his historic World Cup tally to 21 goals as Argentina successfully punched their ticket to the quarter-finals.
The veteran forward’s most prolific World Cup performances have remarkably come in the twilight of his career. After netting seven goals during Argentina’s triumphant 2022 campaign in Qatar, he has already surpassed that figure with his eight goals in the 2026 edition.
By comparison, Messi managed only six World Cup goals across his first four tournament appearances between 2006 and 2018, underscoring a dramatic evolution in his late-career scoring output.
As Argentina marches on in the tournament, Messi’s recent exploits continue to rewrite the history books deep into his international career.
With the quarter-finals on the horizon, the world will be watching to see how much further the talismanic captain can extend his record-breaking form.
