Lionel Messi is used to making history and on Tuesday, during Argentina’s round of 16 clash against Egypt, the star striker etched his name in the Guinness World Records book for an unwanted achievement.
The Argentinian legend missed his fourth career World Cup penalty and second in the ongoing tournament, securing the record of most missed penalties in FIFA World Cup history.
Argentina were already trailing 1-0 when they won a penalty, a golden chance for an equalizer and Messi stepped up, aimed for the right corner but the Egyptian goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir stopped the ball from getting into the net.
He missed his first penalty during a group stage against Austria; however, he didn’t let it rattle him for long as the footballer bounced back in the very same match and scored twice in the win for his side. He also became the all-time top scorer in World Cup history, with 17 tournament goals now to his name.
Guinness World Records has confirmed Messi’s unwanted achievement via a post on X, noting that the iconic goal-scorer has now missed four penalties across his World Cup career, not counting shootouts, twice as many as anyone else who’s ever played the tournament.
The previous two penalties he missed were one against Iceland in 2018 and the other against Poland in 2022.
