Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick to lead Argentina to a 3-0 victory over Algeria in their opening match of the 2026 World Cup on June 16, marking his 200th appearance for the national team and sixth World Cup appearance, a first in history [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. Messi’s opening goal came in the 17th-18th minute with a curling shot that put Argentina ahead 1-0 [1, 4, 5]. He became emotional after scoring, wiping away tears as he revealed they were related to "some difficult days" unrelated to football. "I’m grateful... my team-mates were always by my side, giving me a lot of strength," Messi said [1].
Messi’s hat-trick took his total World Cup goals to 16, tying Miroslav Klose's all-time record for goals at the tournament [1, 2, 3]. He has now scored against 11 different World Cup teams, a unique record [4, 5, 6]. Argentina midfielder Alexis Mac Allister praised Messi's influence, saying, "If anyone thought this team was better without Leo, today it was proven the opposite is true... He is our most important player" [1].
Earlier the same day, France defeated Senegal 3-1 in their group opener with Kylian Mbappé scoring twice [7, 8, 9]. Mbappé’s goals moved him to 58 for the national team, making him France’s all-time leading scorer [7, 8, 9]. His 14 World Cup goals place him third all-time behind Klose (16) and Ronaldo (15) [7, 8, 9]. Mbappé said he plays "to make a mark in my country’s history and help my team win the World Cup," adding that starting with a win "brings some relief although you can never truly relax at a World Cup" [7].
The day also saw controversy in Argentina when TV presenter Florencia Peña falsely reported live that Lionel Messi’s father, Jorge Messi, had died during broadcast. Peña apologized, saying, "I take responsibility... and decided to step aside and end my participation in Luzu" [10]. Jorge Messi was hospitalized with an undisclosed condition but was recovering, and the family denied the false death reports [10, 11]. Luzu TV management fired staff responsible for the misinformation and accepted Peña’s resignation, saying the incident "was unacceptable" and reaffirming their commitment to "responsible, respectful, and rigorous journalism" [10].
Argentina’s next World Cup match is against Austria on June 22 in Group J [1, 2, 3]. France is scheduled to face Iraq on June 23 in their next group game [7, 8, 9].
