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Messi Equals Klose’s All-Time World Cup Goals Record With Hat-Trick vs Algeria
Lionel Messi has tied Miroslav Klose’s record of 16 World Cup goals, the most in men’s tournament history, after scoring a hat-trick in Argentina’s 3-0 win over Algeria on June 16, 2026. The strikes came in Messi’s tournament opener at his sixth World Cup.
Messi’s World Cup Scoring Record
Messi reached 16 World Cup goals across six tournaments (2006-2026), matching Germany’s Miroslav Klose, who set the mark across four tournaments from 2002 to 2014. Messi scored in the 17th, 60th and 76th minute, recording his first-ever World Cup hat-trick in the process. The same match also moved him past Pelé’s all-time record for World Cup goal contributions, with his 24th goal contribution in the tournament’s history.
Messi’s Hat-Trick Against Algeria
Argentina’s 2026 World Cup defense opened in Kansas City against Algeria, ranked 27th in the world, and Messi made sure the occasion matched the moment. He marked his record sixth World Cup appearance with his first hat-trick at a FIFA tournament, becoming the joint-highest scorer in World Cup history in the process.
The opening goal almost didn’t count. Messi thought he had broken the deadlock in the eighth minute with a close-range finish, but the goal was ruled offside. He didn’t have to wait long to make amends. His actual opener was a long-range screamer in the 17th minute, with a mazy run capped by a left-footed drive from the edge of the box that proved too powerful for Algeria goalkeeper Luca Zidane – son of World Cup winner Zinedine Zidane.
Messi added a tap-in in the 60th minute and a curled effort into the bottom corner in the 76th minute to complete the treble, before being substituted off three minutes later to a standing ovation. The goal also meant Messi had scored in five different World Cup editions, matching a mark previously held solely by Cristiano Ronaldo. At 38, it was his 200th cap for Argentina, in a career that began back in 2005 at age 18.
The All-Time World Cup Top Scorers
Messi’s hat-trick pulls him level at the top of a list built over nearly a century of tournaments. Germany’s Miroslav Klose previously held the record outright, having scored 16 goals across four World Cups between 2002 and 2014. Behind that pair, Brazil’s Ronaldo sits alone in third on 15 goals from 19 matches and two titles.
Germany’s Gerd Müller and France’s Kylian Mbappé are tied for fourth on 14 goals apiece. Mbappé had briefly become the leading active scorer in World Cup history with a double against Senegal hours before Messi’s hat-trick reclaimed top spot for the Argentine. France’s Just Fontaine rounds out the top scorers with 13 goals, all from a single tournament in 1958 – still the record for goals scored at one World Cup.
Cristiano Ronaldo, who like Messi is playing his sixth World Cup in 2026, trails well outside the top ten on the all-time goals list, but holds his own record: the most World Cup tournament appearances by any player.
Who has scored the most World Cup goals
World Cup goal totals will keep shifting through the 2026 tournament, with Messi, Mbappé and Ronaldo all still active. As of June 17, 2026, the answer to “who has scored the most World Cup goals” is a tie: Messi and Klose at 16, pending Argentina’s remaining group matches.