Messi breaks Ronaldo's World Cup age record with historic hat-trick
Lionel Messi scored a historic hat-trick on Wednesday morning in Argentina's 3-0 win over Algeria at the 2026 World Cup, moving level with Miroslav Klose as the tournament's all-time top scorer with 16 goals.
The performance also gave Messi another record. At 38, and with his 39th birthday just a week away, he surpassed Cristiano Ronaldo to become the oldest player ever to score a World Cup hat-trick.
Ronaldo had set the previous mark in 2018, when he was 33 and scored a memorable hat-trick for Portugal in a 3-3 draw with Spain, capped by a late free kick. Messi's latest display came as the reigning world champion continues its title defense and as the longtime rivalry between the two stars adds another chapter on the World Cup stage.
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