FanNation Futbol

Lionel Messi Equals World Cup Appearance Record

Lionel Messi has become the second man in FIFA World Cup history to feature in 25 matches. Messi equaled the World Cup appearance record set by Lothar Matthaus.

Robert Summerscales

Lionel Messi Equals World Cup Appearance Record
Lionel Messi Equals World Cup Appearance Record /
In this story:

Argentina captain Lionel Messi has become the second player in men's World Cup history to feature in 25 matches.

The 35-year-old equaled the record previously set by Germany midfielder Lothar Matthaus when he started in Tuesday's semi-final against Croatia.

Messi will break the World Cup appearance record outright if he plays in either the final or third-place playoff at the weekend.

Paris Saint-Germain playmaker Messi has featured at five different World Cups, registering at least one assist at each of them.

Including Messi, only 14 players have made 20 or more World Cup appearances.

Miroslav Klose is third on the list after playing in 24 games for Germany.

Former Italy defender Paolo Maldini is fourth with 23 appearances, ahead of Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo with 22.

Diego Maradona, Wladyslaw Zmuda and Uwe Seeler all played in 21 World Cup games.

Grzegorz Lato, Javier Mascherano, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Cafu, Rafael Marquez and Philipp Lahm each made 20 World Cup appearances.

Lionel Messi pictured ahead of the 2022 World Cup semi-final between Argentina and Croatia
Lionel Messi pictured ahead of the 2022 World Cup semi-final between Argentina and Croatia :: IMAGO/Focus Images/Paul Chesterton
Published
Robert Summerscales
ROBERT SUMMERSCALES

Robert Summerscales launched FanNation Futbol in February 2022. Rob is a British journalist who previously spent two years on the sports desk at the Daily Mail in London, having earlier served as editor of CaughtOffside.com. He has been to the last two FIFA Men's World Cups, in Russia and Qatar, and is looking forward to completing his hat-trick in North America in 2026.

Home/News