Messi vs Ronaldo in 2026: two last world cups.

2026 brought both careers to their international end, and the calendar is not yet closed — the figures on this page are year-to-date rather than final. Messi leads 31 to 22, his joint 14th-best year and Ronaldo's 21st.

Messi's tournament opened with the only World Cup hat-trick of his career, in the group win over Algeria recorded below — he was 38, eight days short of his 39th birthday, at what he had confirmed would be his last World Cup. It closed on 19 July at the MetLife Stadium, where Spain won the final after extra time and Argentina did not register a shot in regulation. It was his second World Cup final defeat in three appearances.

Ronaldo's tournament produced two firsts of a different kind, both recorded below: a brace against Uzbekistan that no other player in the history of the competition has matched for spread across tournaments, and a penalty in the round of 32 that was his first knockout-stage goal in six attempts. Before 2026, every single one of his World Cup goals had been scored in a group match. Portugal went out in the next round.

Both men's last World Cup therefore ended against the same opponent, five weeks apart.