FIFA World Cup 2026 | Group J | Tuesday, 16 June 2026 GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri | Attendance: 69,045 | Referee: Szymon Marciniak
Twenty years to the day since he made his World Cup debut against Serbia and Montenegro — and scored in that one too — Lionel Messi did something he had never done before. A hat-trick. At a World Cup. At 38 years old, in his sixth tournament, with people questioning his fitness coming in.
He answered every single question.
Argentina beat Algeria 3-0 in Kansas City. Messi scored all three. The first a long-range screamer that arrowed into the top corner. The second a scrappy, instinctive finish with his weaker right foot off a parried Mac Allister effort. The third a curled, precise strike into the bottom corner from the edge of the box. Three different types of goals. Three different ways of being the best player on the pitch.
He is level with Miroslav Klose now on 16 World Cup goals — the all-time record. He has 24 goal contributions at the tournament, surpassing Pelé’s mark of 21. He became the oldest player to score multiple goals in a single World Cup match, a record that had belonged to Roger Milla. And he did it all by the 76th minute, before being substituted to a standing ovation from a stadium that was overwhelmingly there to see exactly this.
There was almost an even earlier moment. In the eighth minute Messi thought he had opened the scoring — a close-range finish that would have been a dream start to his record-equalling sixth World Cup appearance. The offside flag went up. Algeria had their own disallowed goal too — Fares Chaibi’s ninth-minute strike ruled out for the same reason. Both sides had a let-off before the game truly settled.
It did not take long for Messi to find his rhythm properly. In the 17th minute, Rodrigo De Paul found him with a cutting pass on the half-turn. Messi took it in stride and bent a sumptuous left-footed strike into the top corner. 1-0. The trademark move — that famous left foot, the mazy setup, the finish too powerful for Luca Zidane, son of World Cup winner Zinedine, to do anything about.
There was a moment of real controversy not long after. In the 32nd minute, Messi raked his studs down the calf of Algeria’s Aïssa Mandi in a challenge that referee Szymon Marciniak penalised with a foul but no card — not even a yellow. VAR did not intervene either. Under IFAB’s own definitions of serious foul play, plenty of observers felt it should have been a red card. Messi avoided it, and the World Cup carried on with him in it.
He made sure that leniency was rewarded. In the 60th minute, he pounced on a parried Mac Allister effort and steered it home with his weaker right boot. 2-0. Then, in the 76th minute, the goal that completed the set — arriving on the edge of the box, curling it expertly inside the post. 3-0. Hat-trick complete.
He was subbed off minutes later. The Kansas City crowd, heavily pro-Argentina, rose to their feet. Even those rooting for Algeria, by most accounts, could not help but appreciate what they had just witnessed.
The numbers around his performance were extraordinary even before you factor in the three goals. Most shots in the match with six. Joint-most touches in the opposition box. Only De Paul and Enzo Fernández made more tackles for Argentina all night — a 38-year-old doing defensive work most attacking players half his age would not bother with. Seven passes into the final third for teammates. Three duels won in midfield. This was not a passenger having a magical night. This was a complete performance.
Algeria, the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations champions, offered little beyond that early disallowed goal. They were always playing a supporting role in someone else’s history lesson.
Messi’s emotions were raw afterwards. He cried after the first goal and admitted it had nothing to do with football — tough personal days, he said, without elaborating further, while thanking his teammates and coaching staff. Lionel Scaloni could barely find the words to describe what he had just watched from his captain. “What can I say? He’s incredible,” the Argentina coach said.
This was also Messi’s 200th international appearance, putting him third on the all-time list behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Kuwait’s Bader Al-Mutawa. Ronaldo would match Messi’s record sixth World Cup appearance the very next day against DR Congo — the two greatest players of their generation, still rewriting history within 24 hours of each other, deep into their late thirties and early forties.
For Argentina, the perfect start to defending their crown. They are aiming to become only the third nation ever to retain the World Cup. The manner of this win — comprehensive, dominant, carried by an icon delivering on the biggest stage at an age when most players have long retired — sends a message to the rest of the field.
For live World Cup scores from every group, visit fawanews.org.uk. Full results, standings and fixtures at the official FIFA World Cup website.
Argentina 3-0 Algeria FIFA World Cup 2026, Group J | Tuesday, 16 June 2026 GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri | Attendance: 69,045 | Referee: Szymon Marciniak
Goals: Lionel Messi 17′, 60′, 76′
Argentina: Goalkeeper; defenders; De Paul, Mac Allister, Fernández E.; Messi (sub off after 76′)
Algeria: Zidane L.; Mandi, defenders; Chaibi (disallowed goal, 9′)
Notable Records: Messi’s first-ever World Cup hat-trick. Level with Miroslav Klose on 16 all-time World Cup goals. 24 goal contributions at the World Cup, surpassing Pelé’s 21. Oldest player to score multiple goals in a single World Cup match, surpassing Roger Milla. 200th international appearance for Argentina.
