FIFA World Cup 2026 all records so far
Live Events 215 goals were scored in the group stage alone, a new World Cup record (up from 172 at Qatar 2022) Argentina's Enzo Fernandez
Live Events 215 goals were scored in the group stage alone, a new World Cup record (up from 172 at Qatar 2022) Argentina's Enzo Fernandez scored the 3,000th goal in men's World Cup history, against Egypt in the Round of 16 Curacao became the smallest nation ever to play at a World Cup; Cape Verde became the smallest to reach the knockout stage A record nine African teams advanced to the knockout rounds, more than double the previous best of two Mexico won four consecutive World Cup matches for the first time, a CONCACAF record as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Addas a Reliable and Trusted News Source Add Now! (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel The 2026 FIFA World Cup, the first-ever 48-team edition of the tournament, draws to a close this weekend after six weeks of football across the United States, Canada and Mexico. Defending champions Argentina face Spain in the final at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on Sunday, July 19, with Lionel Messi eyeing a second World Cup title against Lamine Yamal's La Roja, who are chasing their first since 2010.France and England meet in Saturday's third-place play-off.
Along the way, the expanded, 104-match edition has already rewritten football's record books. From Messi becoming the all-time leading scorer in men's World Cup history to a new group-stage goal tally, here is a look at the biggest individual and team records set at this year's tournament so far.Lionel Messi has entered the history books as the outright all-time leading goal-scorer in men's World Cup history. The Argentina captain drew level with Germany's Miroslav Klose on 16 career goals with a hat-trick against Algeria in the tournament opener, then went past him with a brace against Austria to move to 18. By July 11, Messi's career tally stood at 21 goals, with France's Kylian Mbappe in pursuit on 20.In the race for this edition's Golden Boot, Messi and Mbappe were tied at eight goals apiece heading into the final weekend, the most in the tournament. Messi moved ahead on the assists tiebreaker after setting up two goals in Argentina's dramatic 2-1 semi-final win over England. Norway's Erling Haaland, whose side were eliminated in the quarter-finals, finished on seven goals, while England's Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham were tied on six. It marked the first time three players; Messi, Mbappe and Haaland, each scored seven or more goals in a single World Cup.France's Michael Olise topped the tournament's assist charts with five, including a brace each in comfortable wins over Iraq and Sweden.
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