Messi Breaks World Cup Goals Record With 18 — What It Means for Your LMS Pool

Lionel Messi is the greatest World Cup goalscorer of all time. Full stop.

On Monday evening, the Argentina captain converted twice against Austria to bring his career tally to 18 World Cup goals — surpassing Germany legend Miroslav Klose, who had held the men's record since 2014. The first goal came from a left-footed one-timer in the 38th minute. The second arrived deep in stoppage time, sealing a 2-0 Argentina win and writing another chapter into arguably the most decorated individual World Cup career ever.

For context: Klose played in four World Cups over 16 years to reach 16 goals. Messi now has 18 across five tournaments. He missed a penalty in the ninth minute before scoring twice. That's the sort of thing Messi does.

Argentina as an LMS Pick

Argentina came into this tournament as one of the two or three most dangerous sides, and they're proving it. Messi has scored in six consecutive World Cup games since 2022. Their defensive structure looks solid. They've now beaten Algeria 3-0 on matchday one and Austria 2-0 on matchday two.

In Last Man Standing terms, Argentina are the highest-profile safe pick left standing in Group J. The temptation is enormous — back the tournament favourites, stay in the pool, move to the next round.

The problem is that when everyone backs the same team, the value of that pick diminishes. If Argentina lose once in this tournament — which any team can do — every Argentina-backer goes out at the same time. That's a mass elimination event.

The Real Question: When Do You Use Argentina?

Seasoned LMS players often hold their strongest picks in reserve. The group stage is where you survive on mid-table certainties, not superstars. Save Argentina for the knockouts, when the margin for error disappears and the matchups become more predictable.

That said, with Messi in this form — 18 World Cup goals and counting, possibly his final World Cup at 38 years old — Argentina are not just a popular pick. They're arguably the most dangerous team at the tournament right now. Picking them in the group stage isn't irrational. Just understand you might be burning your best bullet early.

The Record in Numbers

• 18 goals: Messi's World Cup career total
• 16: Miroslav Klose's previous record, set in 2014
• 6: consecutive World Cup matches in which Messi has scored since 2022
• 38: Messi's age at this World Cup
• 1: penalty missed against Austria before scoring twice. He'll do that.

If you're running a Last Man Standing pool or a predictor game for the World Cup, Matchroom handles picks and results automatically — free at getmatchroom.app.