Can Messi inspire Argentina once again?
The 2026 World Cup is packed with subplots and one that’s sure to catch the eye is a likely final battle between old GOAT foes Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Despite their outrageous ability to defy the clock, Ronaldo is now 41, and Messi turns 39 during the tournament, meaning this should be their last crack at a world crown.
Messi finally ended his career-long wait to lift the trophy in Qatar 2022, but it remains the one major piece of silverware missing from Ronaldo’s CV, after winning UEFA Euro 2016 with Portugal.
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner is still banging in goals for Inter Miami, but there’s a sense his move to the USA was to keep this World Cup dream on track, and Messistas will be hoping for a storybook ending in New Jersey on July 19.
Messi will break the 200-cap mark at the World Cup and he already has twice as many goals for Argentina as any other player in their history. He and Ronaldo will also set a new benchmark as the first-ever stars to play at six World Cups, with the Mexican trio of Rafael Marquez, Antonio Carbajal and Andres Guardado stuck on five, alongside Gianluigi Buffon.
Messi will be throwing everything at another World Cup gong and Paddy checks out the best bets for Argentina’s iconic No.10!
Lionel Messi to score v Algeria
Argentina’s opening game of the 2026 World Cup is against Algeria on Wednesday, June 17th (2am), and in what better way could Lionel Messi kick off his final World Cup than opening the scoring for his nation?
He was the first goalscorer in Argentina’s first game at the 2022 World Cup and in his most recent World Cup game too (the 2022 final), scoring both from the penalty spot against Saudi Arabia and France, respectively.
With all the talk of scripts that occur in football. This is one you could write. And we are. Therefore, we’re backing Lionel Messi as the first goalscorer in Argentina’s opening game of the 2026 World Cup.
Cristiano Ronaldo & Messi to score 3+ goals each at the 2026 FIFA World Cup
Both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are heading to their sixth World Cup this summer and both will be desperate to go out on a high as it is almost nailed on that this will be both their final appearances in the competition.
They have both had varying goal-scoring returns in previous World Cup appearances, with Messi’s best being seven goals in 2022 and Ronaldo’s four in 2018. Ronaldo has scored in every World Cup he’s appeared in, but only netted once in each of 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2022. While Messi blanked completely at the 2010 World Cup.
With both being their respective teams’ set-piece takers, they will get more opportunities than most to score. Messi scored four penalties at the 2022 World Cup, while Ronaldo has scored two across all of his World Cup appearances, with his last coming in 2018.
Argentina and Portugal are both tipped to go far in the tournament and with both their superstars hoping to show their best one more time, there is a world where both are in their best goalscoring form and score 3+ goals each.
Golden Boot winner
No player at the 2026 World Cup has more goals in the competition than Messi’s 13. 2022 was by far his best tournament with seven scored as he powered Argentina over the finishing line, but Kylian Mbappe’s hat-trick in the final saw him scoop the Golden Boot with eight.
A World Cup Golden Boot is one of the few accolades not included on Messi’s dizzying list of awards, but he’s just behind Mbappe and Harry Kane on the favourites list. A group including Jordan, Austria and Algeria should offer Messi a chance to make a strong start, and he’s only three behind all-time World Cup goal scorer Miroslav Klose.
winner/Golden Boot
Ronaldo Nazario is the last player to win this double. He scored twice in the 2022 final against Germany to end the tournament with eight goals as Brazil lifted the trophy in Yokohama. Paolo Rossi also did it for Italy in 1982, as did Mario Kempes in 1978, but Argentina are ranked outside the favourites to retain their trophy.
Holding onto a World Cup is incredibly difficult, with Brazil in 1958 and 1962 the only team to do it, but Argentina have the vital Messi factor. The cast around him has also refreshed – with Nico Paz lighting up Serie A – and Lautaro Martinez and Julian Alvarez come into the competition on the back of strong club campaigns.
Argentina’s GROUP J FIXTURES
June 17, 2026, 2am – Argentina v Algeria – Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City
June 22, 2026, 6pm – Argentina v Austria – AT&T Stadium, Arlington
June 28, 2026, 3am – Jordan v Argentina – AT&T Stadium, Arlington
*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change.
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