The September worldwide break marks Argentina’s last step within the World Cup qualifiers. With their spot within the match already secured, the matches in opposition to Venezuela and Ecuador lack the depth of earlier encounters—however that doesn’t imply they’re meaningless. In reality, for Lionel Messi, they carry vital private weight, as he reached a historic file.
By being named within the beginning lineup for Thursday’s match in opposition to Venezuela, Messi turned the participant with essentially the most appearances within the historical past of the South American qualifiers. The 38-year-old ahead reached 72 matches, equaling the file beforehand held solely by Ivan Hurtado.
The Ecuadorian center-back set that mark over 20 years with the nationwide group, from his debut in 1992 to his last look in 2014. Throughout that span, Hurtado took half in 5 World Cup qualifying campaigns, serving to Ecuador attain the tournaments in Korea/Japan 2002 and Germany 2006.
Now Messi joins that elite firm—with one key distinction in his favor. Not like Hurtado, the Argentine star has participated in six completely different qualifying cycles, and in every of them, he efficiently helped Argentina attain the World Cup.
Ecuador legend Ivan Hurtado.
Leo made his qualifiers debut beneath coach Jose Nestor Pekerman in 2005, throughout the lead-up to Germany 2006. On the time, he had a secondary function and performed in solely three matches, however within the years that adopted, he turned a vital a part of the group. With Argentina, Messi efficiently navigated the qualifiers for South Africa 2010, Brazil 2014, Russia 2018, Qatar 2022, and now the 2026 match in the US, Mexico, and Canada.
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Messi’s different file in World Cup qualifiers
Lionel Messi can now make a robust case for being a very powerful participant within the historical past of the South American World Cup qualifiers. That’s not solely because of the variety of profitable campaigns he’s been a part of—or the truth that he shares the file for many appearances.
The Argentine ahead can also be the all-time main scorer within the historical past of South American World Cup qualifiers. Between 2005 and 2025, he scored 34 objectives for Argentina, surpassing Uruguay’s Luis Suarez (29), Bolivia’s Marcelo Moreno Martins (22), and Chile’s Alexis Sanchez (20).
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Will Messi maintain the file alone?
With 72 appearances, Messi presently shares the highest spot with Ivan Hurtado. At 38 years outdated, it’s clear the ahead gained’t start one other qualifying marketing campaign with Argentina forward of the 2030 World Cup. Meaning he’ll must play in Matchday 18 of this match to say the file outright.
Subsequent Tuesday, September 9, Argentina will wrap up their World Cup qualifiers marketing campaign with a match in opposition to Ecuador in Guayaquil. Provided that Lionel Scaloni’s squad has already certified, there’s hypothesis Messi might skip the journey. This might permit him to return early to the US and relaxation forward of a vital stretch with Inter Miami in Main League Soccer. Nonetheless, no official determination has been introduced.
