Lionel Messi's Missed Penalty Denies Historic FIFA World Cup Record

Missed Opportunity for Messi

During Argentina's match against Austria at Dallas Stadium in Arlington on June 22, Lionel Messi had a chance to become the all-time leading scorer in FIFA World Cup history. However, he missed a penalty kick in the ninth minute that could have given Argentina an early advantage. The penalty was awarded after Austrian defender Xaver Schlager fouled Lautaro Martinez in the box. Initially, the referee did not call for a penalty, but after a lengthy review by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), the decision was overturned.

Messi approached the penalty with a stutter step but ultimately shot wide of the goal, leaving him visibly disappointed. This miss was particularly significant as it would have made him the tournament's all-time top scorer, a title he currently shares with German legend Miroslav Klose, both having scored 16 goals in World Cup history.

Messi began this tournament with a remarkable hat-trick against Algeria, marking the first of his World Cup career. Notably, this is the third consecutive World Cup where Messi has failed to convert his first penalty attempt. He previously missed penalties in 2018 against Iceland and in 2022 against Saudi Arabia. In fact, no player in World Cup history has taken or missed as many penalties as Messi. Throughout his career, he has successfully converted four penalties, placing him second in history, just behind Harry Kane, who recently set the record with five penalties.