Latin America Sports Daily for Wednesday, June 17, 2026

01

Messi’s 200th cap, his first World Cup hat-trick, and the records that fell with it

World Cup

There was a moment in the 76th minute at Arrowhead Stadium when 69,000 people watched Lionel Messi receive a pass from Rodrigo De Paul, look up, and curl a shot into the bottom corner with the precision of someone who has scored goals like that for 20 years and is not planning to stop.

It was his third goal of the evening, the first World Cup hat-trick of his career, scored on his 200th appearance for Argentina.

The first goal, in the 17th minute, was a long-range screamer, the type that reminds everyone that Messi’s left foot can do things the rest of the game can only describe. The second, in the 60th, was a tap-in, the simplest kind of finish, the product of movement and positioning built up over thousands of training sessions.

The third — curled, accurate, cold, it brought the stadium to its feet and brought the records with it.

With 16 World Cup goals, Messi now stands level with Germany’s Miroslav Klose, who held the all-time record since 2014. Klose retired from international football that year; Messi has one more tournament left and one record already tied.

He also passed Pelé’s record for most World Cup goal contributions (goals and assists combined, moving to 24, more than any player in the tournament’s history.

After the third goal he was substituted off, walking the pitch to a standing ovation. He is 38, in his sixth World Cup, and running out of records left to break.

Argentina’s 3-0 win over Algeria was otherwise composed and controlled; there was no alarm in it, no drama beyond the size of the occasion.

That was probably how it was always going to go when Messi is fit, focused, and playing in front of people who came specifically to watch him.

02

Group J after matchday one — Argentina and Austria both won, Jordan made history

World Cup

Austria beat Jordan 3-1 in San Francisco on Tuesday evening; Romano Schmid’s curling opener in the 21st minute, a Yazan Al-Arab own goal from a corner at 76′, and a Marko Arnautovic penalty deep in stoppage time settling the result after Jordan had equalised through Ali Olwan in the 50th minute.

Olwan’s goal was Jordan’s first ever at a World Cup: a well-taken curling effort from the left flank, giving the debutants a brief and deserved reward for the pressure they applied throughout.

For Austria, it was their first World Cup win since beating the USA in 1990, ending a 36-year wait at the tournament that began with their return to the finals for the first time since 1998.

Group J standings after matchday one: Argentina 3 points, Austria 3 points, Algeria 0, Jordan 0.

Argentina play Austria on June 22 in Arlington, Texas, the match that will most likely decide which side tops the group. A repeat of Tuesday’s level of Messi would settle it quickly.

For Jordan, their June 22 game against Algeria in Santa Clara is suddenly a must-win if they have any ambition of causing a genuine upset in this World Cup.

03

Colombia close out South America’s matchday one — Uzbekistan tonight at the Azteca

World Cup

Colombia are the last South American side to open their World Cup campaign, a full week after the tournament began, which means they have spent six days watching every other result and preparing at a level of detail most opening-round sides cannot manage.

Uzbekistan are their opponents tonight at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City at 10pm ET, the Central Asian nation’s first ever World Cup appearance, managed by former Italy World Cup winner and Ballon d’Or holder Fabio Cannavaro.

Cannavaro’s side qualified without losing a game across their entire Asian qualifying campaign, but they face a significant step up in class tonight against Néstor Lorenzo’s attack.

Luis Díaz (Bayern Munich), Cucho Hernández, and James Rodríguez lead the attack; Lerma anchors midfield. Colombia’s 2014 quarter-final run was built on exactly this type of talent, and this squad is deeper.

Group K also contains Portugal, who play DR Congo tonight in Houston. A Colombia win and a Portugal win tonight would send those two sides to the top of the group on matchday one.

Full result and analysis in tomorrow’s edition.

04

Matchday two for South America begins Thursday — four games in three days

World Cup

Once Colombia play tonight, South America’s attention turns to matchday two: four games across Thursday, Friday, and Sunday that will begin to define which nations can genuinely compete at this tournament.

Thursday June 19

Brazil vs Haiti (Philadelphia, 9pm ET); Paraguay vs Türkiye (Santa Clara, 11pm ET), both games with real stakes. Neymar’s possible debut and the Casemiro/Danilo fitness question make the Haiti game the most-watched of matchday two.

Friday June 20

Ecuador vs Curaçao (Toronto, 6pm ET). Ecuador must win after losing their opener to Ivory Coast; Germany beat these same Curaçao players 7-1 on June 14, so a convincing win is important for goal difference as well as the three points.

Sunday June 21

Uruguay vs Cape Verde (Miami, 6pm ET). Uruguay drew their opener, are missing De Arrascaeta and Ronald Araújo through injury, and cannot afford to drop more points against the group’s smallest nation.

05

Frequently asked questions

FAQ

What records did Messi break against Algeria?

Messi’s hat-trick against Algeria moved him to 16 World Cup goals, level with Germany’s Miroslav Klose for the all-time tournament record. Klose set the record by scoring his 16th goal in the 2014 World Cup final against Argentina; Messi has now tied it at this same tournament.

He also surpassed Pelé’s record for most World Cup goal contributions (goals and assists), moving to 24, more than any player in history. It was his first World Cup hat-trick across six tournaments; Tuesday was his 200th cap for Argentina, the first player ever to appear in six World Cups.

Can Messi break Klose’s record outright?

Yes. Argentina have two more group games: Austria on June 22 and Jordan on June 27, plus the knockout stage if they advance, which they are overwhelming favourites to do. Messi needs just one more goal to become the outright all-time top scorer at the World Cup.

At 38, in what is certainly his final tournament, Messi needs one goal to be the outright all-time top scorer. Scaloni will manage his minutes carefully, but the incentive to give him time is now very obvious.

When does Brazil play next and will Neymar be involved?

Brazil play Haiti on Thursday June 19 in Philadelphia at 9pm ET. Neymar has been targeting this game since the Morocco draw on June 13 and the CBF has described his recent MRI as showing good progress.

He has not played since May 17, a gap of 33 days, and will most likely come off the bench. Casemiro and Danilo fitness updates are expected from the CBF this week; Brazil sit second in Group C behind Scotland on goal difference.