DALLAS — Every time he touched the ball, you could feel the stadium bracing for his historic moment. Supporters inside Dallas Stadium stood up as soon as Lionel Messi gained possession inside Austria‘s half in the 38th minute. Then, in a matter of seconds, his left-footed strike beyond goalkeeper Alexander Schlager turned a silent stadium into a cauldron of chants and cheers.
Fans sang “Messi, Messi” while bowing in unison to celebrate as the Albiceleste captain Messi made history with that goal, breaking a tie with Germany legend Miroslav Klose for the all-time leading scorer in men’s World Cup history. Even Argentina teammates could not believe the situation, looking at each other in utter awe while hugging Messi in celebration of his 17th World Cup goal, and it came on a date uniquely tied to the country’s rich soccer history.
Messi broke the record almost 20 years to the day since he scored his first World Cup goal, back in 2006 against Serbia & Montenegro; more amazingly, it was exactly 40 years since Diego Maradona’s infamous “Hand of God” goal he scored on the way to Argentina winning the 1986 edition. He wasn’t done there, scoring Argentina’s second injury time to surpass another soccer legend — Brazil‘s Marta — to become the leading all-time scorer in men’s and women’s tournament history.
When it comes to the G.O.A.T. debate, Messi emphatically answered that question in Dallas, as Argentina booked their spot in the Round of 32. He has scored all five of Argentina’s goals so far at this World Cup — amazing doesn’t even begin to describe him.
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Argentina needed him, too, as they largely struggled to crack Austria’s backline, though Messi did have a chance to break the record inside the opening 10 minutes. Lautaro Martínez was played in on goal with a clever pass to feet, only for Stefan Posch and Xaver Schlager to collide with the Inter forward and bring him down. A lengthy VAR check ultimately awarded Argentina the penalty, providing Messi the perfect opportunity to score his record-breaking 17th goal and begin the party.
Fans stood up with their phones pointed at the Argentina captain as he set the ball on the spot. The stadium fell silent — the record was surely a fait accompli. Then, the shot went wide and faint Austrian cheers dominated the once-rapturous venue. Messi covered his face with his hands, while Argentina fans stood frozen in disbelief.
It took a moment for the reporters inside the press box to process what had happened before furiously typing: Messi misses penalty, cannot convert to make history. It wasn’t entirely out of character — the Argentina captain has missed three of seven World Cup penalties, not including shootouts — but early joy was replaced by stunned silence as the atmosphere instantly became tense, when play resumed with an Austria goal kick.
Argentina supporters attempted to lighten the situation by chanting “por que de la mano de Leo Messi la vuelta vamos a dar” (“because through Messi, we will turn this around”), but Messi struggled to regain his composure in the minutes that followed, missing shots and uncharacteristically losing possession in midfield. His missed penalty also impacted the emotions of his teammates who seemed shell-shocked; Austria quickly seized on the vibe to enjoy their one real spell of dominance.
Austria used that momentum swing to push higher towards Argentina’s penalty area and test goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez, but they failed to faze him. Historically, in order to beat Argentina, teams can’t squander such opportunities, and Messi & Co. recovered from the initial blow of the missed penalty attempt. Soon after the first-half hydration break, the reigning World Cup champions were back on top.
“When [Messi] gets fired up, everyone gets fired up,” Scaloni said after the match. “Even when the team was struggling, [Messi] stole balls, he was committed. Being committed is for a reason, and that’s what he brings. I don’t even know what else to say anymore, nothing is enough.”
“I enjoy playing and having a good time on the pitch,” Messi said after the game. “Today there was a moment where I was very angry about the penalty because I missed it, I kicked it very badly, and well, luckily we were able to turn that situation around, we were able to take the lead and get the three points, which is what’s important.”
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Messi ‘so happy’ after breaking World Cup goal record in 2-0 win
It’s truly been a career effort from Messi, who scored his first World Cup goal in 2006 in his first tournament to his record-breaking 17th goal in 2026, coming in his record-breaking sixth World Cup in 2026. Dallas Stadium made a montage of Messi’s previous 16 goals and showed it on the large screens before kick off, a fitting preamble to the now-historic afternoon.
And so, Argentina have two wins from two games and for the second time in a row, it’s Messi’s goals that carried the defending champions to victory. He’s the only Argentina player to score so far in this tournament.
“Impressive. He’s impressive,” Lisandro Martínez said in the mixed zone. “He deserves it for what he does, and what he shows game by game. He has us accustomed.”
Monday’s win ensured Argentina’s place in the Round of 32, and fans might start dreaming of a second straight World Cup win considering that Messi is only getting better with age and with every World Cup. Fully 12 of Messi’s 18 goals have come after he turned 35 years old and now, just days shy of his birthday — he turns 39 on Wednesday — he leads the 2026 Golden Boot standings and has taken control of the all-time mark.
“He doesn’t stop surprising us,” Leandro Paredes said in the mixed zone.
At full-time, with the 70,000-strong crowd welcoming Messi’s celebratory lap with teammates around “Jerry World,” the giant stadium where the Dallas Cowboys (led by Jerry Jones) reside. However, after today’s history-making performance, we might want to rename it, and the sport, “Messi World” instead.
