Such a night has rarely, if ever, been witnessed in World Cup history. Within a span of just three hours, three football geniuses delivered a showcase of the highest caliber.
First, Lionel Messi shattered Miroslav Klose’s record for the most goals scored in World Cup final tournaments. After netting a brace against Austria, Messi’s tally reached 18 goals—a milestone that seems far from the limit given his current momentum.
It appeared nearly impossible to overshadow this historic feat. Yet, in the very next match of the night, Kylian Mbappé responded with a double against Iraq, bringing his World Cup goal total to 16 and drawing level with Klose. The race continues with Messi, who is playing in his final World Cup, while Mbappé, with potentially two more tournaments ahead, still has a chance to surpass the legendary Argentine.
Immediately after, Norwegian Erling Haaland marked his own brace in an intensely contested match against Senegal. His achievement, though more modest, is significant—he became Norway’s all-time top scorer in World Cup finals, breaking a nearly 30-year-old record held by Kjetil Rekdal. Haaland, like Mbappé, has scored four goals in this tournament and shows no intention of politely yielding the title of top scorer to Messi.
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