List of international goals scored by Lionel Messi

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Messi has scored 112 international goals since making his debut for Argentina in 2005. Rus-Arg 2017 (16).jpg
Messi has scored 112 international goals since making his debut for Argentina in 2005.

Lionel Messi is an Argentine footballer who has represented the Argentina national team from his debut in 2005. Throughout his international career, Messi has scored 112 goals in 189 international appearances, [1] [2] making him the country's all-time top scorer; he surpassed Gabriel Batistuta's record of 54 goals with a free kick against the United States in the semi-final of the Copa América Centenario on 21 June 2016. [3] [4] He also holds the record for most goals by a South American male, surpassing Brazilian Pelé's 77 goals with a hat-trick against Bolivia on 9 September 2021. [5] He currently sits as the second-highest international goalscorer of all time after scoring against Canada in the 2024 Copa América semi-final. [6]

Contents

Messi made his debut for Argentina in a 2–1 away win over Hungary on 17 August 2005, [7] and scored his first international goal the following year in his sixth appearance, against Croatia. [1] His goal against Serbia and Montenegro, on 16 June 2006, at the age of 18 years and 358 days, made him the youngest-ever scorer for Argentina at a FIFA World Cup. [8] [9] He has scored ten international hat-tricks, and has netted twice in a match on thirteen occasions. [1] In a friendly against Estonia on 5 June 2022, Messi scored five goals in a match for Argentina for the first time. [10] Out of all his opponents, Messi has scored the most against Bolivia, recording eleven goals in total. [1] He has scored 17 international goals at the Estadio Mâs Monumental, his most in a single stadium. [1] In 2022, Messi broke the record for the most international goals scored in a calendar year for Argentina, with eighteen. [11]

Messi has scored 34 goals in FIFA World Cup qualifiers, making him the highest scorer of the qualification in CONMEBOL. [12] He has scored fourteen goals in the Copa América; two in 2007, one in 2015, five in 2016, one in 2019, four in 2021 and one in 2024. [1] Messi has scored thirteen goals in FIFA World Cup tournaments, [1] a record for Argentina; [13] he scored one goal in 2006, four in 2014, one in 2018 and another seven in 2022. The remainder of Messi's goals, 51, have come in friendlies. [1]

Goals

As of match played 15 October 2024.
Scores and results list Argentina's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Messi goal. [1]
Table key
‡Indicates goal was scored from a penalty kick
Indicates Argentina won the match
Indicates the match ended in a draw
Indicates Argentina lost the match
List of international goals scored by Lionel Messi
No.CapDateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetitionRef.
161 March 2006 St. Jakob-Park, Basel, SwitzerlandFlag of Croatia.svg  Croatia 2–12–3 Friendly [14]
2816 June 2006 Arena AufSchalke, Gelsenkirchen, GermanyFlag of Yugoslavia (1992-2003); Flag of Serbia and Montenegro (2003-2006).svg  Serbia and Montenegro 6–06–0 2006 FIFA World Cup [9]
3145 June 2007 Camp Nou, Barcelona, SpainFlag of Algeria.svg  Algeria 2–2‡4–3Friendly [15]
44–2
5188 July 2007 Estadio Metropolitano de Cabudare, Barquisimeto, VenezuelaFlag of Peru (state).svg  Peru 2–04–0 2007 Copa América [16]
61911 July 2007 Polideportivo Cachamay, Puerto Ordaz, VenezuelaFlag of Mexico.svg  Mexico 2–03–0 [17]
72416 October 2007 Estadio José Pachencho Romero, Maracaibo, VenezuelaFlag of Venezuela (state).svg  Venezuela 2–02–0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification [18]
82620 November 2007 Estadio El Campín, Bogotá, ColombiaFlag of Colombia.svg  Colombia 1–01–2 [19]
9274 June 2008 San Diego Stadium, San Diego, United StatesFlag of Mexico.svg  Mexico 2–04–1Friendly [20]
103311 October 2008 Estadio Mâs Monumental, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaFlag of Uruguay.svg  Uruguay 1–02–12010 FIFA World Cup qualification [21]
113511 February 2009 Stade Vélodrome, Marseille, FranceFlag of France (lighter variant).svg  France 2–02–0Friendly [22]
123628 March 2009Estadio Mâs Monumental, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaFlag of Venezuela (state).svg  Venezuela 1–04–02010 FIFA World Cup qualification [23]
134414 November 2009 Vicente Calderón, Madrid, SpainFlag of Spain.svg  Spain 1–1‡1–2Friendly [24]
14527 September 2010Estadio Mâs Monumental, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaFlag of Spain.svg  Spain 1–04–1 [25]
155417 November 2010 Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, QatarFlag of Brazil.svg  Brazil 1–01–0 [26]
16559 February 2011 Stade de Genève, Geneva, SwitzerlandFlag of Portugal.svg  Portugal 2–1‡2–1 [27]
175720 June 2011Estadio Mâs Monumental, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaFlag of Albania.svg  Albania 2–04–0 [28]
18647 October 2011Flag of Chile.svg  Chile 2–04–1 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification [29]
196715 November 2011 Estadio Metropolitano Roberto Meléndez, Barranquilla, ColombiaFlag of Colombia.svg  Colombia 1–12–1 [30]
206829 February 2012 Stadion Wankdorf, Bern, SwitzerlandFlag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg   Switzerland 1–03–1Friendly [31]
212–1
223–1‡
23692 June 2012Estadio Mâs Monumental, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaFlag of Ecuador.svg  Ecuador 3–04–02014 FIFA World Cup qualification [32]
24709 June 2012 MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, United StatesFlag of Brazil.svg  Brazil 1–14–3Friendly [33]
252–1
264–3
277115 August 2012 Waldstadion, Frankfurt, GermanyFlag of Germany.svg  Germany 2–03–1 [34]
28727 September 2012 Estadio Mario Alberto Kempes, Córdoba, ArgentinaFlag of Paraguay (1990-2013).svg  Paraguay 3–13–12014 FIFA World Cup qualification [35]
297412 October 2012 Estadio Malvinas Argentinas, Mendoza, ArgentinaFlag of Uruguay.svg  Uruguay 1–03–0 [36]
303–0
317516 October 2012 Estadio Nacional, Santiago, ChileFlag of Chile.svg  Chile 1–02–1 [37]
327822 March 2013Estadio Mâs Monumental, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaFlag of Venezuela (state).svg  Venezuela 2–0‡3–0 [38]
338214 June 2013 Estadio Doroteo Guamuch Flores, Guatemala City, GuatemalaFlag of Guatemala.svg  Guatemala 1–04–0Friendly [39]
343–0‡
354–0
368310 September 2013 Estadio Defensores del Chaco, Asunción, ParaguayFlag of Paraguay.svg  Paraguay 1–0‡5–22014 FIFA World Cup qualification [40]
374–1‡
38867 June 2014 Estadio Único Diego Armando Maradona, La Plata, ArgentinaFlag of Slovenia.svg  Slovenia 2–02–0Friendly [41]
398715 June 2014 Maracanã Stadium, Rio de Janeiro, BrazilFlag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg  Bosnia and Herzegovina 2–02–1 2014 FIFA World Cup [42]
408821 June 2014 Mineirão, Belo Horizonte, BrazilFlag of Iran.svg  Iran 1–01–0 [43]
418925 June 2014 Estádio Beira-Rio, Porto Alegre, BrazilFlag of Nigeria.svg  Nigeria 1–03–2 [44]
422–1
439514 October 2014 Hong Kong Stadium, So Kon Po, Hong KongFlag of Hong Kong.svg  Hong Kong 5–07–0Friendly [45]
447–0
459612 November 2014 Upton Park, London, EnglandFlag of Croatia.svg  Croatia 2–1‡2–1 [46]
469813 June 2015 Estadio La Portada, La Serena, ChileFlag of Paraguay.svg  Paraguay 2–0‡2–2 2015 Copa América [47]
471044 September 2015 Shell Energy Stadium, Houston, United StatesFlag of Bolivia.svg  Bolivia 5–07–0Friendly [48]
486–0
491058 September 2015 AT&T Stadium, Arlington, United StatesFlag of Mexico.svg  Mexico 2–22–2 [49]
5010729 March 2016Estadio Mario Alberto Kempes, Córdoba, ArgentinaFlag of Bolivia.svg  Bolivia 2–0‡2–0 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification [50]
5110910 June 2016 Soldier Field, Chicago, United StatesFlag of Panama.svg  Panama 2–05–0 Copa América Centenario [51]
523–0
534–0
5411118 June 2016 Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, United StatesFlag of Venezuela (state).svg  Venezuela 3–04–1 Copa América Centenario [52]
5511221 June 2016 NRG Stadium, Houston, United StatesFlag of the United States.svg  United States 2–04–0 [53]
561141 September 2016Estadio Malvinas Argentinas, Mendoza, ArgentinaFlag of Uruguay.svg  Uruguay 1–01–02018 FIFA World Cup qualification [54]
5711615 November 2016 Estadio San Juan del Bicentenario, San Juan, ArgentinaFlag of Colombia.svg  Colombia 1–03–0 [55]
5811723 March 2017Estadio Mâs Monumental, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaFlag of Chile.svg  Chile 1–0‡1–0 [56]
5912210 October 2017 Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa, Quito, EcuadorFlag of Ecuador.svg  Ecuador 1–13–1 [57]
602–1
613–1
6212429 May 2018 La Bombonera, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaFlag of Haiti.svg  Haiti 1–0‡4–0Friendly [58]
632–0
643–0
6512726 June 2018 Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg, RussiaFlag of Nigeria.svg  Nigeria 1–02–1 2018 FIFA World Cup [59]
661307 June 2019Estadio San Juan del Bicentenario, San Juan, ArgentinaFlag of Nicaragua.svg  Nicaragua 1–05–1Friendly [60]
672–0
6813219 June 2019Mineirão, Belo Horizonte, BrazilFlag of Paraguay.svg  Paraguay 1–1‡1–1 2019 Copa América [61]
6913715 November 2019 Al-Awwal Park, Riyadh, Saudi ArabiaFlag of Brazil.svg  Brazil 1–01–0 2019 Superclásico de las Américas [62]
7013818 November 2019 Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv, IsraelFlag of Uruguay.svg  Uruguay 2–2‡2–2Friendly [63]
711398 October 2020La Bombonera, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaFlag of Ecuador.svg  Ecuador 1–0‡1–0 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification [64]
721433 June 2021 Estadio Único Madre de Ciudades, Santiago del Estero, ArgentinaFlag of Chile.svg  Chile 1–0‡1–1 [65]
7314514 June 2021 Estádio Olímpico Nilton Santos, Rio de Janeiro, BrazilFlag of Chile.svg  Chile 1–01–1 2021 Copa América [66]
7414828 June 2021 Arena Pantanal, Cuiabá, BrazilFlag of Bolivia.svg  Bolivia 2–0‡4–1 [67]
753–0
761493 July 2021 Estádio Olímpico Pedro Ludovico, Goiânia, BrazilFlag of Ecuador.svg  Ecuador 3–03–0 2021 Copa América [68]
771539 September 2021Estadio Mâs Monumental, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaFlag of Bolivia.svg  Bolivia 1–03–02022 FIFA World Cup qualification [69]
782–0
793–0
8015510 October 2021Flag of Uruguay.svg  Uruguay 1–03–0 [70]
8115925 March 2022La Bombonera, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaFlag of Venezuela (state).svg  Venezuela 3–03–0 [71]
821625 June 2022 Estadio El Sadar, Pamplona, SpainFlag of Estonia.svg  Estonia 1–0‡5–0Friendly [10]
832–0
843–0
854–0
865–0
8716323 September 2022 Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, United StatesFlag of Honduras.svg  Honduras 2–0‡3–0 [72]
883–0
8916427 September 2022 Red Bull Arena, Harrison, United StatesFlag of Jamaica.svg  Jamaica 2–03–0 [73]
903–0
9116516 November 2022 Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab EmiratesFlag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates 4–05–0 [74]
9216622 November 2022 Lusail Stadium, Lusail, QatarFlag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia 1–0‡1–2 2022 FIFA World Cup [75]
9316726 November 2022Flag of Mexico.svg  Mexico 1–02–0 [76]
941693 December 2022 Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, Al Rayyan, QatarFlag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia 1–02–1 2022 FIFA World Cup [77]
951709 December 2022Lusail Stadium, Lusail, QatarFlag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands 2–0‡ 2–2
( a.e.t. )
( 4–3 p)		 [78]
9617113 December 2022Flag of Croatia.svg  Croatia 1–0‡3–0 [79]
9717218 December 2022Flag of France.svg  France 1–0‡ 3–3
( a.e.t. )
( 4–2 p)		 2022 FIFA World Cup [80]
983–2
9917323 March 2023Estadio Mâs Monumental, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaFlag of Panama.svg  Panama 2–02–0Friendly [81]
10017428 March 2023Estadio Único Madre de Ciudades, Santiago del Estero, ArgentinaFlag of Curacao.svg  Curaçao 1–07–0 [82]
1013–0
1025–0
10317515 June 2023 Workers' Stadium, Beijing, ChinaFlag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia 1–02–0 [83]
1041767 September 2023Estadio Mâs Monumental, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaFlag of Ecuador.svg  Ecuador 1–01–0 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification [84]
10517817 October 2023 Estadio Nacional de Lima, Lima, PeruFlag of Peru (state).svg  Peru 1–02–0 [85]
1062–0
10718214 June 2024 Northwest Stadium, Landover, United StatesFlag of Guatemala.svg  Guatemala 1–14–1Friendly [86]
1084–1
1091869 July 2024MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, United StatesFlag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 2–02–0 2024 Copa América [87]
11018915 October 2024Estadio Mâs Monumental, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaFlag of Bolivia.svg  Bolivia 1–06–02026 FIFA World Cup qualification [88]
1115–0
1126–0

Hat-tricks

Messi scored his first international hat-trick against Switzerland in February 2012. Suisse vs Argentine - Granit Xhaka & Lionel Messi crop.jpg
Messi scored his first international hat-trick against Switzerland in February 2012.
No.OpponentGoalsScoreVenueCompetitionDateRef.
1Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg   Switzerland 3 – (1–0', 2–1', 3–1')3–1 Stadion Wankdorf, Bern, Switzerland Friendly 29 February 2012 [31]
2Flag of Brazil.svg  Brazil 3 – (1–1', 2–1', 4–3')4–3 MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, United States9 June 2012 [33]
3Flag of Guatemala.svg  Guatemala 3 – (1–0', 3–0', 4–0')4–0 Estadio Doroteo Guamuch Flores, Guatemala City, Guatemala14 June 2013 [39]
4Flag of Panama.svg  Panama 3 – (2–0', 3–0', 4–0')5–0 Soldier Field, Chicago, United States Copa América Centenario 10 June 2016 [51]
5Flag of Ecuador.svg  Ecuador 3 – (1–1', 2–1', 3–1')3–1 Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa, Quito, Ecuador 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification 10 October 2017 [57]
6Flag of Haiti.svg  Haiti 3 – (1–0', 2–0', 3–0')4–0 La Bombonera, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaFriendly29 May 2018 [58]
7Flag of Bolivia.svg  Bolivia 3 – (1–0', 2–0', 3–0')3–0 Estadio Mâs Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification 9 September 2021 [69]
8Flag of Estonia.svg  Estonia 5 – (1–0', 2–0', 3–0', 4–0', 5–0')5–0 Estadio El Sadar, Pamplona, SpainFriendly5 June 2022 [10]
9Flag of Curacao.svg  Curaçao 3 – (1–0', 3–0', 5–0')7–0 Estadio Único Madre de Ciudades, Santiago del Estero, Argentina28 March 2023 [82]
10Flag of Bolivia.svg  Bolivia 3 – (1–0', 5–0', 6–0')6–0Estadio Mâs Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification 15 October 2024 [88]

Statistics

As of match played 15 October 2024. [1]
  1. ↑ Appearances in 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification.
  2. ↑ Appearances in 2006 FIFA World Cup.
  3. ↑ Six appearances and two goals in 2007 Copa América, four appearances and two goals in 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification.
  4. 1 2 Appearances in 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification.
  5. ↑ Appearances in 2010 FIFA World Cup.
  6. ↑ Four appearances in 2011 Copa América, four appearances and two goals in 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification.
  7. 1 2 Appearances in 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification.
  8. ↑ Appearances in 2014 FIFA World Cup.
  9. ↑ Appearances in 2015 Copa América.
  10. ↑ Five appearances and three goals in 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification, five appearances and five goals in Copa América Centenario.
  11. ↑ Appearances in 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification.
  12. ↑ Appearances in 2018 FIFA World Cup.
  13. ↑ Appearances in 2019 Copa América.
  14. ↑ Appearances in 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification.
  15. ↑ Nine appearances and five goals in 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification, seven appearances and four goals in 2021 Copa América.
  16. ↑ Two appearances and one goal in 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification, one appearance in 2022 Finalissima, seven appearances and seven goals in 2022 FIFA World Cup.
  17. ↑ Appearances in 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification.
  18. ↑ Five appearances and one goal in 2024 Copa América, two appearances and three goals in 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification.

See also

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