Thursday, July 23, 2026

"Al Jazeera" - Sports:

Sports

In every edition of the global tournament, records emerge for teams, players, spectators, and host nations. In this report, we highlight some of the records set at the 2026 World Cup, according to the FIFA website:

(Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane),

(Ousmane Dembélé and Kylian Mbappé)

First duo from the same national team to each score six goals in a single edition (6).. an achievement that eluded legendary duos like Sándor Kocsis and Ferenc Puskás, Jairzinho and Pelé, and Rivaldo and Ronaldo. The English duo were the first to achieve it, before the French duo matched them in the same edition.

Johan Manzambi.. Youngest substitute to score a brace

The number 9 striker entered the pitch while Switzerland were struggling against Bosnia and Herzegovina, and after just 2 minutes and 46 seconds, he gave his team the lead, then returned to score a second goal at the age of 20 years and 247 days, snatching the record from Paraguay's Nelson Cuevas.

Mbappé.. All-time top scorer of the World Cup (22 goals)

Miroslav Klose entered the 23rd edition leading the list by three goals. Lionel Messi needed just one match to equal his tally, before engaging in a thrilling race with Kylian Mbappé until the end.

Messi started the tournament ahead by one goal over Mbappé, and extended the gap to three by the end of the group stage, but the French star turned the tables in the final stretch and seized the lead by one goal.

Messi.. The player with the most victories (23)

Klose held this record with a margin of just one victory, so breaking it seemed inevitable, and 'the Flea' soon surpassed him after leading Argentina to seven consecutive wins. Kylian Mbappé now trails Messi with 17 victories.

Messi.. The player with the most consecutive matches scoring (9)

Only Just Fontaine and Jairzinho had previously scored in six consecutive matches, but Messi easily surpassed them by continuing to find the net in his early matches in North America, extending his streak to nine consecutive matches.

Messi.. The most goals scored from outside the box (7 goals)

The Argentine captain had previously scored from outside the box against Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iran, and Nigeria in 2014, then against Mexico in 2022. He added two more long-range goals against Algeria to snatch the record from Rivellino, before enhancing his tally with a new goal against Jordan.. All of Lionel Messi's World Cup goals have come from outside the penalty area.

Olisé.. The most assists (7 assists)

Pelé created six goals when his Brazil team dazzled the world in Mexico 1970, but Olisé surpassed him by setting up seven goals for France in North America. Five of those assists were to teammate Kylian Mbappé, the highest number of assists between two players in a single edition of the tournament.

Rodri.. The player with the most completed passes in a single edition (790 successful passes)

The Spanish midfielder broke his previous record after completing 638 successful passes in Qatar 2022. Rodri had then snatched the record from his compatriot Xavi, who registered 599 successful passes in South Africa 2010.

Ronaldo.. First player to score in (6 different editions)

The 41-year-old Portugal captain became the first player to score in six different World Cup editions, an achievement not matched by his rival Lionel Messi, who failed to score in the 2010 South Africa edition. He also became the second oldest scorer in tournament history after Roger Milla. Ironically, Michael Laudrup with Denmark, Messi, and Ronaldo hold the titles of youngest and oldest scorers in their respective national team World Cup histories.

Eloy Room.. Most saves by a goalkeeper in a single match (16 saves)

The Curaçao goalkeeper equaled the record after making 16 saves against Ecuador, led by Enner Valencia, in Kansas City. American Tim Howard had recorded the same number against Belgium in 2014, but Room achieved it in 30 minutes less time. Curaçao, with a population of about 156,000, had previously become the smallest population nation to participate in a World Cup, surpassing Iceland. Cape Verde, with a population of about 530,000, became the smallest country to reach the knockout stage in tournament history.

Football

Unai Simón.. Most clean sheets by a goalkeeper (7 matches)

The Spanish goalkeeper kept clean sheets in seven of the eight matches he played in the tournament. The previous record was five clean sheets, achieved by Jan Jongbloed with the Netherlands in 1974, Walter Zenga with Italy in 1990, Taffarel with Brazil in 1994, Fabien Barthez with France in 1998, Oliver Kahn with Germany in 2002, Gianluigi Buffon with Italy in 2006, and Iker Casillas with Spain in 2010.

Unai Simón, along with Pedro Porro, Aymeric Laporte, Pau Cubarsí, and Marc Cucurella, helped build a solid defensive system that led Spain to concede just one goal throughout the tournament, despite facing France led by Kylian Mbappé and Argentina led by Lionel Messi. This is the fewest goals conceded by a team that won the World Cup, surpassing France 1998 with Fabien Barthez, Italy 2006 with Gianluigi Buffon, and Spain 2010 with Iker Casillas, each of whom conceded two goals.

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