Lionel Messi becomes first player to feature in six Men's FIFA World Cups

The eight-time Ballon d'Or winner achieved the historic feat after taking the field for Argentina in their opening match of the 2026 tournament against Algeria in Kansas City, Missouri, according to ESPN.

The appearance also marked his 200th international match for Argentina, during which he surpassed a group of players--Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal, Antonio Carbajal, Andres Guardado, Rafael Marquez (all Mexico), and Germany's Lothar Matthaus--who had previously been tied with him in World Cup participation records.

Ronaldo is now expected to match Messi's record when Portugal faces Congo DR in its opening fixture on Wednesday (local time).

Mexico goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa has also been named in six World Cup squads, but he did not feature in matches across two of those tournaments.

Messi, now 38, already held the record for the most World Cup appearances, having overtaken Matthaus during the 2022 final in Qatar. His latest outing on Tuesday was his 27th World Cup match overall.

The Inter Miami forward has not officially confirmed his international future, though he has indicated that this edition could be his final major tournament with Argentina.

He first announced himself on the World Cup stage in 2006 at just 18 years old, scoring after coming on as a substitute in Argentina's 6-0 win over Serbia and Montenegro.

Messi added another milestone to his illustrious career, becoming only the third player in football history to reach 200 international appearances for his country. With this appearance, Messi joins an elite list of international footballers with the most caps in history, alongside Cristiano Ronaldo and Kuwait's Bader Al-Mutawa.

Players with the most international caps in history include Cristiano Ronaldo (228), Bader Al-Mutawa (202), Lionel Messi (200), followed by Luka Modric (198) and others on the list of global greats, according to 433 X handle. (ANI)