The 2026 FIFA World Cup has delivered a series of record-breaking achievements, with players, teams and coaches rewriting the history books during the group stage and Round of 32.
According to FIFA, the expanded tournament has already become the biggest in World Cup history, attracting a record 4.64 million spectators across 72 matches while averaging three goals per game.
Among the standout individual achievements, Lionel Messi became the first player to score in seven consecutive World Cup matches, the tournament’s all-time leading scorer with 19 goals, and the oldest player to register a World Cup hat-trick at 38 years and 357 days.
Cristiano Ronaldo became Portugal’s highest World Cup scorer with 10 goals and the first footballer to score in six different World Cup editions.
Kylian Mbappe emerged as the leading World Cup scorer for both France and Europe with 18 goals, while Harry Kane overtook Gary Lineker as England’s all-time top World Cup scorer with 11 goals.
Morocco’s Ismael Saibari became the first African player to score in three straight World Cup matches, while Kevin Pina netted Cape Verde’s first-ever World Cup goal.
The tournament also witnessed several team milestones. A record nine African nations reached the knockout stage, while Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cape Verde, Canada, DR Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt and South Africa advanced beyond the group phase for the first time.
Cape Verde finished the group stage unbeaten in their tournament debut, Senegal became the first African side to score five goals in a World Cup match, and Japan’s 4-0 win over Tunisia marked the 1,000th match in FIFA World Cup history.
Mexico secured four consecutive World Cup victories for the first time, Canada’s 6-0 win over Qatar set a new scoring record for a CONCACAF nation, and the United States recorded its first-ever four-goal performance at the tournament with a 4-1 victory over Paraguay.
On the sidelines, Curaçao’s Dick Advocaat became the oldest coach in World Cup history at 78 years and 271 days, while South Africa’s Hugo Broos became the oldest manager to win a World Cup match at 74 years and 75 days.
Spain goalkeeper Unai Simón also entered the record books after setting a new Guinness World Record with 519 consecutive minutes without conceding a goal, surpassing Walter Zenga’s long-standing mark from 1990.
