With a stunning strike, Lionel Messi opened the score for Argentina against Algeria in the 2026 World Cup. Defending champions Argentina and Algeria clashed Tuesday night at Kansas City Stadium for a highly anticipated Matchday 1 Group J showdown at the 2026 World Cup. In another masterclass, Lionel Messi tied the competition’s scoring record with his first hat trick in the competition. The historic breakthrough began with Rodrigo De Paul, who threaded a pinpoint, line-breaking through ball to find Messi in the attacking third. Seizing the pocket of space, the Inter Miami superstar drove forward and unleashed a ferocious strike from just outside the 18-yard box; though Algerian goalkeeper Luca Zidane managed to get a hand on the ball, the sheer power carried it into the back of the net to ignite the stadium in the 17th minute. MESSI SCORES ARGENTINA’S FIRST GOAL OF THE 2026 FIFA WORLD CUP! 🇦🇷 pic.twitter.com/JyNwqGCaFU— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) June 17, 2026 The reigning champions doubled their advantage in the 60th minute following a chaotic sequence in the Algerian box. Alexis Mac Allister collected a deflected cross from Nicolas Gonzalez and unleashed a thunderous strike from well outside the box; though Luca Zidane managed to parry the initial blast, he spilled the rebound directly into the danger zone. With Algerian defender Aissa Mandi completely blowing the offside trap by sitting too deep, Messi easily stepped up to slide home a right-footed tap-in and secure his brace. IT’S A LIONEL MESSI BRACE IN THE 2026 FIFA WORLD CUP! 🇦🇷 pic.twitter.com/UySEduMBpo— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) June 17, 2026 Messi capped off his historic night in the 76th minute, putting the exclamation point on a lethal Argentine counterattack. Nicolas Gonzalez spearheaded the break before cutting a precise pass back to Messi, who cleanly controlled the ball and curled a clinical, pinpoint finish into the back of the net from just outside the 18-yard box to secure his first career World Cup hat trick. Then, head coach Lionel Scaloni immediately subbed his captain off to allow Nico Paz some minutes, triggering a deafening standing ovation from the Kansas City crowd as Messi walked off the pitch. FIFA WORLD CUP HAT TRICK FOR MESSI! 🇦🇷Lionel Messi ties Miroslav Klose for the most goals in Men’s FIFA World Cup history with 16 🐐 pic.twitter.com/vw6bl65w7s— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) June 17, 2026 The match opened at a breathless pace, and Argentina nearly took the lead even earlier. Just five minutes into the contest, Lautaro Martinez held up play brilliantly and laid the ball off for Messi to smash it home, but the referee quickly waved off the opening tally due to a slight offside call against the No. 10. A nearly identical drama unfolded on the opposite end just moments later, this time breaking the hearts of the Algerian fans. In the 8th minute, Fares Chaibi exploited a gap in the backline, burst into the Argentine penalty box, and cleanly beat Emi Martinez, but the linesman’s flag went up immediately, keeping the African side off the scoreboard. The Group J clash against Algeria marks a monumental 200th international appearance for Messi in the Argentina kit, a staggering benchmark that distances him from any other player in the rich history of the Albiceleste. With his first-half breakthrough, the captain elevates his international production to 118 goals and 64 assists, concurrently logging the 912th and 913th official goal of his career for club and country. Messi temporarily matches Cristiano Ronaldo record Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are rewriting the history books together at the 2026 World Cup, becoming the first players in soccer history to feature in six different editions of the tournament since their shared debuts back in 2006. While Portugal has yet to kick off its Group K campaign against Congo DR on Wednesday, Messi’s opening-half goal against Algeria allowed him to temporarily draw level with his long-time rival in a highly exclusive