Messi and Ronaldo begin their sixth World Cup on the same day, chasing one last trophy

A shared debut, two decades on

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo will both begin their sixth World Cup campaign on 17 June 2026, a milestone no outfield player has reached before. Only Mexican goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa shares the record of six tournament call-ups. Argentina, the defending champion, opens against Algeria at 3:00 a.m. Italian time in Kansas City (still 16 June locally), while Portugal faces the Democratic Republic of the Congo at 7:00 p.m. Italian time in Houston. The two fixtures fall exactly 20 years after Messi's first World Cup appearance on 16 June 2006, when the then-teenager scored and assisted within 16 minutes of coming off the bench.

The missing piece for Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo has won every major club trophy and two Nations League titles plus a European Championship with Portugal, but the World Cup remains the one prize absent from his collection. At 41 years and 3 months, he is the oldest outfield player at this tournament. His lowest moment came in Qatar 2022, when he was benched for Portugal's 6-1 win over Switzerland and could not prevent a quarter-final exit to Morocco. "The dream was postponed, not extinguished," he has since signalled, moving to Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia on a contract reported at €200 million per year. Critics, including Fabio Capello, have questioned whether the Saudi league is competitive enough to keep him sharp for the highest level.

We start with great hope. Physically I feel good — haven't you seen the matches? When things get difficult, that's when you see the real champions. A lot depends on many factors, but I'm very confident everything will go well.

The goal-scoring record at stake

Ronaldo is the only player to have scored in five different World Cup editions. His eight tournament goals span Germany 2006 (one against Iran), South Africa 2010 (one against North Korea), Brazil 2014 (one against Ghana), Russia 2018 (four against Spain and one against Morocco), and Qatar 2022 (one against Ghana). If he finds the net against DR Congo, Uzbekistan, or Colombia in the group stage, he will extend a record that already looks untouchable. Messi has 13 World Cup goals but failed to score in the 2010 edition, leaving Ronaldo alone in the consistency record.

Messi's farewell tour

Messi enters his sixth World Cup having already lifted the trophy in Qatar 2022, freeing him from the shadow of Diego Maradona that had followed his entire Argentina career. Now playing for Inter Miami in the United States, he knows the American stadiums and conditions better than any other competitor. His Argentina side, managed by Lionel Scaloni, opens against Algeria as the reigning champion and carries the weight of a nation that expects a deep run. Messi's own form remains under less scrutiny than Ronaldo's: the Argentine has already completed the career set, while the Portuguese is still chasing the one prize that would match his rival's achievement.

Can they meet in the final?

The two have never faced each other in a World Cup match. With the right bracket alignment, a final meeting on 19 July at New York's MetLife Stadium is mathematically possible but, as multiple Italian outlets note, difficult. Portugal enters the tournament with more optimism than in recent editions, while Argentina must navigate a field of younger challengers including Kylian Mbappé's France and a Norway side built around Erling Haaland. For both veterans, this tournament is a time machine: a chance to close the book on a rivalry that has produced 13 Ballons d'Or, 86 team trophies, 1,624 club goals, and 260 international goals between them.

Messi is the greatest on the planet, Ronaldo of the universe.