Lionel Messi had already missed the moment once. Twelve minutes into Argentina’s World Cup meeting with Austria, the chance to pass Miroslav Klose from the penalty spot drifted wide. For a few minutes, one of football’s most reliable storylines seemed to have taken a sharp turn.
Then Messi found another way.
The Argentina captain scored his 17th career men’s World Cup goal in the first half against Austria on Monday, moving past Germany great Miroslav Klose and becoming the outright leading scorer in men’s World Cup history. The goal arrived in the 38th minute, a left-footed finish after Argentina worked the ball into the box from the left, turning a tense early miss into another defining record in Messi’s extraordinary international career.
MESSI SCORES!!!!!!! https://t.co/D9DGO7iL5o pic.twitter.com/BVB0UQuB0W
— Fut Sheriff (@FutSheriff) June 22, 2026
The strike gave Argentina the lead and gave Messi a record that had stood since Klose finished his World Cup career with 16 goals. Messi had entered the 2026 tournament on 13 goals, then surged level with Klose after a hat-trick in Argentina’s opening win over Algeria, a match FIFA described as another landmark performance in his long World Cup story.
For readers following Argentina’s title defence, the record follows the same late-career arc that began before the tournament, when Messi was named in Argentina’s squad for a historic sixth World Cup appearance. That build-up was covered in Swikblog’s earlier report on Messi leading Argentina’s 2026 World Cup squad, with the forward already positioned as one of the tournament’s central figures before a ball had been kicked.
Messi turns penalty miss into record-breaking moment
The drama came from the way Messi reached the mark. A penalty after just 12 minutes looked like the cleanest route to history, but his effort went wide, delaying the record and briefly giving Austria a psychological lift.
Messi’s response was the kind of composed finish that has defined much of his career. He moved into the area, met the pass from the left and struck first time with his left foot beyond Austria goalkeeper Alexander Schlager. The finish was not the most spectacular goal of his career, but it may become one of the most replayed because of what it meant.
Argentina’s goal also underlined Messi’s remarkable longevity. He first appeared at a World Cup in 2006 and has stretched his influence across six tournaments, from teenage promise to senior statesman, from heartbreak to the 2022 title, and now to the top of the men’s scoring list.
According to FIFA’s match report from Argentina’s opener against Algeria, Messi had already drawn level with Klose after scoring a hat-trick in a 3-0 win. That set up the Austria match as the day he could move clear, and even the early penalty miss could not stop him from doing so before half-time.
Messi now sits on 17 men’s World Cup goals, ahead of Klose on 16, Brazil’s Ronaldo on 15, and both Gerd Müller and Kylian Mbappé on 14. Just Fontaine remains on 13, while Pelé is listed with 12. The record places Messi at the front of a list that spans eras, styles and very different World Cup formats.
The broader World Cup scoring conversation also includes Brazil legend Marta, who has scored 17 goals in the Women’s World Cup. Messi’s latest strike means he has now matched that all-time World Cup total while moving clear at the top of the men’s tournament list.
Mbappé remains the active threat to Messi’s mark
Kylian Mbappé remains the most obvious active challenger. The France forward has already climbed to 14 World Cup goals, and at 27 he still has time to chase Messi’s total if France continue to go deep in major tournaments.
That looming chase adds another layer to the record. Klose’s mark lasted more than a decade, but the modern game now has two generational forwards from different eras overlapping on the same list. Messi has reached the summit near the end of his international career, while Mbappé is still moving through his prime.
For Argentina, the goal was about more than a personal milestone. It strengthened their position in Group J and reinforced the sense that Messi remains decisive even as he approaches his 39th birthday. His role has changed over the years, but his ability to bend a match toward one historic moment has not.
The 2026 World Cup has already brought a run of major storylines, from injury concerns to squad changes and early tournament shocks. Swikblog has been tracking the wider picture in its World Cup 2026 latest news and team updates, but Messi’s goal against Austria now stands as one of the tournament’s defining images so far.
The missed penalty will be part of the story because it made the record feel briefly uncertain. The finish that followed will be remembered because it showed why Messi’s career has always carried a different rhythm: pressure, pause, and then the decisive touch.
After years of World Cup near-misses, a title in Qatar and now the men’s scoring record, Messi has added another historic line to a career that already seemed complete. At 17 World Cup goals, he stands alone at the top of the men’s game, with Argentina still moving through a tournament that may yet offer him more chances to stretch the record further.
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