​Lionel Messi didn’t forget the legend he surpassed to claim the title of the all-time leading scorer in FIFA World Cup history. With his first goal in Argentina’s Group J clash against Austria, Messi etched his name solo atop the World Cup scoring list, eclipsing Germany’s Miroslav Klose. Klose had held the record since the 2014 World Cup, a tournament that saw Germany crowned world champions after defeating Messi’s Argentina. In a conversation with the internal media team of Bundesliga club FC Nürnberg, Klose shared that Messi reached out to him after overtaking the record, and that Argentina’s head coach Lionel Scaloni had arranged a phone call between the two greats.
“Scaloni organized a call between Messi and me. It was incredibly moving,” Klose recalled. “We had crossed paths on the pitch several times before, with encounters that were always fair and respectful, but that call marked the first time we had spoken after so long. He told me he would send me an autographed jersey.” Scaloni and Klose had been teammates at Napoli, turning this gesture from the Argentinian coach and the German legend into a gracious moment in the history of international football.
Klose’s record of 16 World Cup goals was accumulated over four tournaments and was first shattered in Brazil’s infamous 7-1 victory over the host nation, a game that saw the German forward surpass Ronaldo Nazario to claim the top spot. Messi took six World Cups to overtake Klose’s total, a testament to his longevity and consistency at the sport’s highest stage. As the 2026 World Cup unfolds, Messi already stands with eight goals, positionally leading the tournament’s Golden Boot race and remaining five ahead of Klose.
Kylian Mbappé of France has also surpassed Klose’s all-time tally within his third World Cup appearance, and at 27 years old he is widely anticipated to eventually surpass Messi’s record as his career continues to unfold across future World Cups. England’s Harry Kane sits two goals behind Klose and could challenge the German’s mark during the 2026 edition. The expansion of the World Cup to 48 teams introduces an additional match for nations, a change that makes Klose’s 16-goal record more vulnerable to being surpassed by an emergent generation of prolific scorers in the years to come.
The record books in World Cup history are dynamic, reflecting the changing nature of the tournament and the evolving talents of its stars. Messi’s ascent to the top of the all-time scorers list marks a historic milestone, one that highlights a remarkable career defined by consistency, precision, and an enduring impact on the international stage. As new talents rise and the format of the World Cup expands, football enthusiasts can expect the chase for the mythical scoring record to continue, with each new edition potentially rewriting the boundaries of excellence.