Players to score in their country's first five games at a FIFA World Cup ft. Lionel Messi & Gerd Müller

Five players have managed to achieve the feat.

The FIFA World Cup 2026 has reached its absolute peak. The record books are being completely rewritten with every knockout stage. As the elite nations are set for the ultimate battle for the coveted title, individual records are up for grabs.

On the grandest stage, achieving world-class consistency is nearly impossible. However, only a select group of history’s finest attackers have managed to turn the tournament into their battleground. They have created their goal-scoring feats to etch them into the history of the sport.

Maintaining that goalscoring form across five consecutive matches in World Cup history requires a lethal combination of elite mentality, extreme awareness, and clinical finishing.

On that note, here is the list of the only five iconic footballing gods to have scored in their country’s first five games at a single FIFA World Cup.

All Players to Score in the First Five Games at a World Cup

S.No.	Player Name	Country	Year
5	Just Fontaine	France	1958
4	Jairzinho	Brazil	1970
3	Gerd Müller	West Germany	1970
2	Rivaldo	Brazil	2002
1	Lionel Messi	Argentina	2026

5. Just Fontaine (France) – 1958

Just Fontaine undoubtedly put on the most explosive individual goal-scoring campaign in the tournament’s history during the 1958 World Cup in Sweden. The French forward opened his campaign with a brilliant hat-trick against Paraguay.

Fontaine scored in all six of France’s fixtures. It included braces against Yugoslavia and Northern Ireland. Once against Scotland and Brazil before concluding his run with four goals against West Germany.

He finished the tournament with a still-unbeaten record of 13 goals in a single edition.

4. Jairzinho (Brazil) – 1970

Affectionately dubbed “The Hurricane,” the explosive Brazilian winger used his devastating acceleration and precision to find the back of the net in Brazil’s six matches. All this during the 1970 Mexico World Cup, starting with a brace against Czechoslovakia. He ended with his final goal against Italy in the final.

Jairzinho eventually extended this streak to all six matches, becoming the only player to score in every single round on the way to lifting the trophy.

3. Gerd Müller (West Germany) – 1970

The same tournament in Mexico witnessed another historic masterclass performance, with Germany’s Gerd Müller also achieving the feat. “Der Bomber” kicked off his campaign with a match-winner against Morocco.

He followed with back-to-back hat-tricks against Bulgaria and Peru to completely dominate the group stages. Müller extended his scoring streak to five games by netting a dramatic extra-time winner against England in the quarter-finals. He eventually finished the tournament with a brace in the semi-finals against Italy, ending the tournament with a tally of 10 goals.

2. Rivaldo (Brazil) – 2002

During the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan, Rivaldo provided the creative elegance that perfectly powered Brazil’s iconic “Three R’s” frontline. Rivaldo scored in all three group-stage matches against Turkey, China, and Costa Rica. Rivaldo extended his scoring run to five consecutive matches by netting crucial goals against Belgium and England, guiding the Seleção to their fifth world title.

1. Lionel Messi (Argentina) – 2026

Targeting back-to-back World Cup title victories in arguably his final World Cup campaign, Lionel Messi continues to completely rewrite footballing records. Messi kicked off the newest campaign with a spectacular hat-trick against Algeria.

He then found the net against Austria and Jordan to comfortably guide Argentina through the group stages. He extended his brilliant run in the knockout rounds. The player scored in the Round of 32 against Cape Verde.

All this before netting his eighth goal of the tournament during Argentina’s dramatic 3-2 comeback victory over Egypt in the Round of 16.

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