The trajectory of the greatest scorers in the World Cups: from the pioneer Lucien Laurent to the record holder Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi reached a historic milestone, becoming the top scorer in the entire history of World Cups. This distinction, which he now holds, has previously been celebrated by twelve other players, representing six different countries, since the tournament’s inception in 1930. Three Brazilian icons feature in this remarkable list: Leônidas da Silva, who in 1938 equaled Argentine Guillermo Stábile’s eight goals; Ademir Menezes, record holder in 1950 with nine goals; and Ronaldo Fenômeno, who in 2006 reached fifteen.
The journey towards the artillery record began with the first goal in World Cups, scored by Frenchman Lucien Laurent. He scored in the 19th minute of the first half in the 4-1 victory over Mexico, on July 13, 1930. However, this primacy lasted a surprisingly brief period, around an hour and a half, as his teammate, André Maschinot, found the net twice in the same match, before the break and in the 42nd minute.
During the same inaugural edition of the World Cup, the record for goals accumulated was surpassed by the American Bert Patenaud, who scored four goals. However, Argentine Guillermo Stábile stood out, starting to score consecutively from the third round onwards and finishing the World Cup as the top scorer, with a total of eight goals. This rapid succession of record holders right at the beginning of the tournament highlights the competitive intensity of that first World Cup.
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Below is the complete list of athletes who held the title of greatest scorer in the history of World Cups, in chronological order:
- Lucien Laurent (France, 1930 World Cup):The player made history when he scored the first goal in World Cups, opening the scoring in France’s 4-1 victory against Mexico in the 1930 World Cup.
- André Maschinot (France, 1930 World Cup):In the same game, he scored twice and quickly surpassed his teammate in the tournament’s overall top scorer.
- Bert Patenaud (United States, 1930 World Cup):After a goal in the opening round and a hat-trick against Belgium, the American athlete became the competition’s top scorer, all in the 1930 edition.
- Guillermo Stábile (Argentina, 1930 World Cup):The Argentine took the lead in artillery with two goals against Chile, totaling five. His two goals in the semi-final and one in the final took him to eight goals, ending the World Cup as the top scorer.
- Leônidas da Silva (Brazil, 1938 World Cup):The “Black Diamond” equaled Stábile’s record, scoring one goal in the 1934 World Cup and seven in 1938. He was the first Brazilian to be the overall top scorer in a World Cup.
- Ademir Menezes (Brazil, 1950 World Cup):Playing at home, the top scorer of the 1950 World Cup, held in Brazil, surpassed Leônidas to become the new top scorer in the history of the World Cup.
- Sándor Kocsis (Hungary, 1954 World Cup):The Hungarian held the record in just one World Cup, scoring eleven goals in the 1954 World Cup, where Hungary finished runner-up.
- Just Fontaine (France, 1958 World Cup):The French striker followed the pattern of previous editions, taking over the overall top scorer with the thirteen goals he scored in the 1958 World Cup. To this day, Fontaine holds the record for most goals in a single edition of the tournament.
- Gerd Müller (Germany, 1974 World Cup):The iconic German became the World Cup’s top scorer with a decisive goal: which sealed Germany’s 2-1 victory over the Netherlands in the 1974 final. Top scorer in 1970 with ten goals and four more in 1974, Müller was the one who held the record for the longest time, holding the record for an impressive 32 years.
- Ronaldo (Brazil, 2006 World Cup):The “Phenomenon” achieved a record with three goals in the 2006 World Cup in Germany. He tied with Gerd Müller by scoring twice against Japan and surpassed the mark by opening the scoring against Ghana, totaling fifteen World Cup goals.
- Miroslav Klose (Germany, 2014 World Cup):The German striker surpassed Ronaldo in spectacular fashion. By scoring two goals in the historic 7-1 defeat of Brazil in the 2014 World Cup semi-final, Klose reached sixteen goals, becoming the new record holder.
- Lionel Messi (Argentina, 2026 World Cup):The Argentine star needed just two rounds in the 2026 World Cup to destroy Klose’s record. With three goals in his debut against Algeria and two more against Austria in the following game, Messi reached eighteen goals, establishing the new mark.
