Messi surpassed Ronaldo's record for most hat-tricks.

 Messi surpassed Ronaldo's record for most hat-tricks.

ust as the leaves sway in the wind, the record books shift whenever Lionel Messi steps onto the pitch. Today, during the 2026 World Cup qualifiers at the Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires, Messi etched his name deeper into football history by scoring a hat trick in Argentina's 6-0 victory over Bolivia. He not only netted three goals but also contributed two assists, matching Cristiano Ronaldo’s record for the most hat tricks for a national team.

Here’s a look at the milestones Messi reached:

10 Hat Tricks Messi recorded his 10th hat trick in international football, equaling Ronaldo's achievement. Ronaldo reached this mark in 2021 during a 5-0 win over Luxembourg. He was the first player to hit 10 hat tricks in men’s international football, breaking the previous record of 9 held by Sweden's Sven Riedel. In women's football, former U.S. striker Alex Morgan has 12 hat tricks.

112 Goals With today’s performance, Messi raised his international goal tally to 112 in 189 matches. In comparison, Ronaldo has scored 133 goals in 216 matches. Former Iranian forward Ali Daei ranks third with 108 goals in 148 matches.

58 Hat Tricks Overall, Messi has achieved a total of 58 hat tricks for both club and country, the second highest in football history. Ronaldo leads with 66 hat tricks. However, neither player is likely to catch the all-time record held by three footballers with over 100 professional hat tricks: Germany's Irwin Helmschen (141+), Austria and Czech Republic's Josef Bican (101+), and Hungary's Ferenc Puskás (100+).

13 Years It’s been 13 years since a player contributed to at least four goals in a South American World Cup qualifier—Luis Suárez scored four against Chile in 2011. In today’s match, Messi scored three goals and assisted two.

1 Messi became the first player to achieve three hat tricks in South American World Cup qualifiers, having scored two against Bolivia and one against Ecuador.

15 Years The last time a player scored a hat trick and provided two assists in a South American World Cup qualifier was 15 years ago, when Bolivia's Joaquín Botero accomplished the feat in a 6-1 victory over Argentina on April 1, 2009.