​Argentina forward Lionel Messi waved to the crowd after helping his team clinch a 3-0 group-stage win over Jordan at Dallas Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Saturday, June 27, 2026. The Dallas Morning News captured the moment as Messi, who turned 39 this week, continued to redefine his World Cup legacy. After a dazzling start to the tournament with a hat trick in a 3-0 victory over Algeria in Kansas City, Messi became the all-time leading scorer in World Cup history, surpassing 17 goals with a 2-0 win over Austria, and then adding his 18th in the Jordan match.
Technically, the late kickoff against Jordan didn’t affect Argentina’s knockout-stage destiny, and Jordan was headed home after their first World Cup campaign. Yet the crowd, and the players themselves, treated the game as anything but routine. The questions about who would supply goals beyond Messi—who had all five Argentina goals in the first two games—were answered as Giovani Lo Celso delivered with a free-kick, bending the ball past the Jordanian wall, and Lautaro Martínez converted a penalty to give Argentina a 2-0 lead at halftime.
By the time Messi re-entered at the 60-minute mark, Argentina trailed 2-1, and Jordan had prevented a clean sheet. Messi then secured the match with a 24-meter free kick that curled over the wall and left the Jordanian goalkeeper with no chance.
Messi’s enduring dominance on the world stage—capturing seven World Cup goals across Qatar and the present tournament after a record six in his first four appearances—continues to fuel the argument that he stands among the sport’s all-time greats. While Ronaldo has long been a rival in the debate, Messi’s recent World Cup exploits, culminating in Argentina’s renewed title hopes, highlight a remarkable late-career renaissance that could define his legacy for years to come.