Lionel Messi now owns 12 World Cup assists, a number no other player in the tournament’s 94-year history has reached. The previous record of 10, held by Germany’s Fritz Walter, stood for decades before Messi surpassed it during the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The record in context

Messi’s 12th assist came during the knockout stages of the 2026 tournament, with Argentina advancing deep into the bracket. A key contribution against Switzerland helped cement the milestone.

Messi is the only player in history to register assists across five different World Cups. Five. That’s a span stretching from 2006 to 2026, covering two full decades of elite international football.

Messi now leads all players in career World Cup goal contributions during elimination rounds with 12 total, split evenly between 6 goals and 6 assists. That puts him ahead of Pelé and Kylian Mbappé.

Why crypto cares about the World Cup

Fan tokens, popularized by platforms like Socios and Chiliz, have historically seen significant volume spikes during major international tournaments. The Argentine Football Association’s fan token, ARG, became one of the most traded fan tokens during the 2022 World Cup after Argentina’s championship run.

Decentralized prediction markets and on-chain betting protocols have grown substantially since the last World Cup cycle. Platforms built on Ethereum, Polygon, and Solana now handle meaningful volume around major sporting events.

Sorare, the fantasy football platform built on blockchain technology, features World Cup content that becomes more valuable as marquee players hit milestones.

The GOAT economy

FIFA itself explored blockchain initiatives around the 2022 World Cup, and the 2026 tournament, hosted across the US, Canada, and Mexico, represents the largest World Cup ever staged with 48 teams.

The risk is that fan tokens remain thinly traded and highly correlated with on-field results rather than fundamentals. A Messi injury or an early Argentina exit could crater associated token prices overnight.