Lionel Messi had a chance on Monday evening, June 22, 2026, to become the all-time leading scorer in World Cup history, but he missed from the penalty spot against Austria. The miss came early in the match, after Messi had scored a hat trick against Algeria in the opening round, and it left millions of viewers stunned.
Israeli broadcaster Sport 5 highlighted the miss as a historic moment, and Argentine media reacted with disbelief. One Argentine outlet wrote, “The unbelievable happened! Messi missed the target,” while Spain’s Marca said, “He missed! Messi missed the penalty!”
Marca added that the Argentina captain tried so hard to place the ball into the corner that he sent it wide, calling it also a rare historical moment because Messi had missed a World Cup penalty. The report said Argentina lost a golden opportunity to take the lead, but noted that “an angry” Messi can still be a force to reckon with.
The miss also made Messi the first player to miss a penalty at this World Cup. The article was published by Sport 5 on June 22, 2026, at 20:25.