Twenty World Cup records could fall at 2026 Tournament

World Cup 2026 could become one of the most historic tournaments in football history, with a host of long standing records under threat.

Research by ActionNetwork.com has identified 20 records that could be broken when the tournament kicks off next year, with nations and players alike chasing places in the sport’s record books.

Defending champions Argentina are among the teams with the chance to make history. After lifting the trophy in Qatar in 2022, they could become only the third nation to win back to back World Cups. If successful, Argentina would join Brazil and Italy and become the first country in 64 years to retain the title.

Brazil, already the most successful nation in World Cup history with five titles, could further extend that record with another triumph.

England and Uruguay are also pursuing a unique milestone. Either nation could surpass Italy’s record for the longest gap between successive World Cup titles. England’s only World Cup success came in 1966, while Uruguay last won the tournament in 1950.

France could also achieve a feat matched by only two countries before. Following their World Cup victory in 2018 and runner up finish in 2022, Les Bleus could become just the third nation to reach three consecutive World Cup finals, joining Brazil and Germany.

Several individual records could also fall.

Argentina captain Lionel Messi is expected to extend his own records for the most World Cup appearances and the most minutes played at the tournament. The 38 year old currently holds the records with 26 matches and 2,314 minutes.

Messi and Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo could also become the first players in history to appear at six different World Cup tournaments.

In front of goal, more history could be made. Messi and France striker Kylian Mbappé are both within reach of the all time World Cup scoring record of 16 goals.

Ronaldo, meanwhile, could become the first player ever to score in six separate World Cup editions, adding another landmark achievement to his career.

With football’s biggest prize once again at stake, World Cup 2026 could deliver not only a new champion but also a series of milestones that reshape the history of the tournament.

PLAYERS

Lionel Messi (Argentina) or Kylian Mbappé (France) could tie or break the record for the most overall goals scored at the World Cup. The current record holder is Miroslav Klose (Germany), who scored 16 goals throughout his career; Messi has scored 13 goals while Mbappé has scored 12 goals.
Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) could become the first player to score a goal in 6 different World Cup editions (he is currently the only player to score in 5 editions having scored in every edition since 2006).
Lionel Messi (Argentina) is set to extend his record as the player with the most overall World Cup matches played (now 26) – assuming that Messi plays in all group stages matches, his new total will be 29 matches, but this number could be even higher, depending on how far Argentina goes in the tournament.
Lionel Messi (Argentina) and Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) are set to become the first players to ever appear in 6 World Cup editions – both of them have appeared in every edition since 2006.
Lionel Messi (Argentina) could extend his record for the most World Cups with an assist (now 5, having assisted in every edition since 2006). As for the most overall assists, the record depends on the methodology used: under the traditional count, Pelé (Brazil) leads with 10 assists, while under stricter modern criteria the record belongs to Fritz Walter (Germany) with 9, so Messi could either tie or break these records (Messi’s current assists count: 8).
Lionel Messi (Argentina) is set to extend his record for the most minutes played at the World Cup – his current record is 2,314 minutes played.
Lionel Messi (Argentina) is set to extend his record for the most overall matches played at the World Cup as a captain – his current record is 19 matches played as a captain.
Kylian Mbappé (France) could become the first player to ever score in 3 World Cup finals (he scored in both 2018 and 2022 so not only would he become the first player to score in 3 separate finals but also the first player to ever score in 3 consecutive finals).

NATIONS

Argentina could become only the third nation to win consecutive World Cup titles following their 2022 victory (and the first one to do so in 64 years), joining Italy (consecutive wins in 1934 & 1938) and Brazil (consecutive wins in 1958 & 1962).
Brazil could extend its record as the nation with the most World Cup titles – they have won the competition 5 times, so a win in 2026 would be their record-extending 6th victory. Having said that, their current record of 5 wins could be tied by Germany.
England or Uruguay could break Italy’s record for the longest gap between successive titles at the World Cup – Italy’s current record is 44 years (between their 1938 & 1982 titles) and if England were to win, it would be 60 years since their last title in 1966 while for Uruguay it would be even longer – 76 years since their last title in 1950.
Germany could also extend its record as the nation with the most 2nd or 3rd place trophies at the World Cup – they are the leader in both, ending up 2nd 4 times and 3rd also 4 times.
France could become only the third nation to ever appear in 3 consecutive World Cup finals following their 2018 victory and their 2022 runner-up finish – the only nations to have achieved this are Germany (1982-1990) and Brazil (1994-2002).
Brazil will extend its record as the nation with the most World Cup tournament appearances (2026 will be their 23rd appearance) and they will also extend their record for the most overall matches played (now 114). They could also extend their record for the most overall matches won (now 76), goals scored (now 237) and red cards received (now 11).
England could extend their record for the most overall matches ending up in a draw (now 22), however, this record could also be tied/broken by Germany (now 21 draws).
Germany could also extend its record for the most overall goals conceded (now 130).
Mexico could extend their record for the most overall World Cup matches lost (now 28 losses).
Brazil, France or Germany have a chance to break out of their tie and become the sole holder of the record as the top-scoring nation in the most World Cup editions – they currently share the record, all of them being the top-scoring nation 4 times (Brazil: 1950, 1962, 1970, 2002 & France: 1958, 1982, 1998, 2022 & Germany: 1990, 2006, 2010, 2014)
Germany could extend their record as the nation with the most appearances in the World Cup final – 2026 could be their record-extending 9th final appearance (Germany’s final appearances: 1954, 1966, 1974, 1982, 1986, 1990, 2002, 2014). On the other hand, if Brazil makes it to the final and Germany does not, Brazil will tie their record (Brazil’s final appearances: 1950, 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, 1998 & 2002)
For the first time in 28 years, a host nation could become the World Cup champion and in 2026, there is a triple chance of it happening due to the hosting duties being split between Mexico, Canada and the United States – the last time a host nation also won the tournament was in 1998 when France won during its hosting year.