Lionel Messi showed he is far from finished as he scored a brilliant hat-trick to lead Argentina to a 3-0 victory over Algeria in their opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The reigning champions made a winning start to their title defence at the Kansas City Stadium, with Messi once again proving the difference on the biggest stage.
Playing his 200th match for Argentina, the 38-year-old captain opened the scoring in the 17th minute with a superb curling effort into the top corner after receiving a pass from Rodrigo De Paul.
The goal settled Argentina after a lively start in which both teams had efforts ruled out for offside.
Algeria tried to respond and created a few dangerous moments, but Argentina’s experience helped them maintain control of the game.
Messi doubled the lead on the hour mark after capitalising on a mistake by Algeria goalkeeper Luca Zidane. The Argentine star reacted quickest to the loose ball and calmly finished from close range.
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner completed his hat-trick in the 76th minute with another excellent strike from outside the penalty area. After winning possession from Nicolas Gonzalez, Messi drove forward before firing a powerful shot beyond Zidane.
The treble was Messi’s first-ever World Cup hat-trick and took his total number of goals at the tournament to 16, drawing level with Germany legend Miroslav Klose as the competition’s all-time leading scorer.
The performance also made Messi the oldest player to score a World Cup hat-trick and further strengthened his status as one of the greatest players in football history.
For Argentina, the victory was another positive sign that they have what it takes to defend the trophy they won in 2022. It was also their first opening-match victory as defending champions after defeats in 1982 and 1990.
Algeria showed determination throughout the contest but were punished for defensive mistakes and will need a positive result in their next group match to keep their hopes of reaching the knockout stage alive.
Argentina now turn their attention to their next Group J fixture against Austria, while Algeria will look to bounce back against Jordan.
