Messi, Kane and Ronaldo put World Cup record book under early pressure

The 2026 World Cup has quickly become a record-chasing tournament. Lionel Messi is now level with Miroslav Klose on 16 World Cup goals, Harry Kane has matched Gary Lineker’s England finals record, and Cristiano Ronaldo has become the oldest outfield player to start a World Cup match.

Messi’s hat-trick in Argentina’s 3-0 win over Algeria moved him to the top tier of the all-time scoring list, while Kylian Mbappé remains close behind with 14 World Cup goals and is already France’s all-time leading scorer. Kane’s two goals in England’s 4-2 win over Croatia took him to 10 World Cup goals, level with Lineker, and added another landmark as he joined David Beckham as the only England players to score at three different World Cups.

Ronaldo’s tournament has also added to his long list of milestones. By starting for Portugal in Houston at 41 years and 132 days, he set a new record for the oldest outfield player to start at a World Cup, and a goal in this edition would make him the first player to score at six different World Cups.

Elsewhere, Erling Haaland’s double for Norway against Iraq put him level with Kjetil Rekdal as Norway’s joint top World Cup scorer, while Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha made history in his nation’s debut by keeping out Spain in a 0-0 draw. The disciplinary record is also worth monitoring, with six red cards already shown in the early stage of the tournament, though the all-time tournament mark of 28 remains some distance away.