A hat trick, defined as a player scoring three goals in a single match (excluding penalty shootouts), is a remarkable achievement in soccer. Its significance is amplified when it occurs on the grand stage of the FIFA World Cup.
The first hat trick in World Cup history was accomplished by American forward Bert Patenaude, who netted all three goals in the United States’ 3-0 victory over Paraguay during the group stage of the inaugural tournament in 1930, held in Uruguay.
At just 20 years old, the Fall River, Massachusetts native was the youngest member of the 16-player U.S. national team, which finished third behind runner-up Argentina and the host nation, Uruguay.
Fast forward ninety-two years to the 2022 World Cup, where France‘s Kylian Mbappé became only the second player to score a hat trick in a World Cup final, joining England‘s Geoff Hurst from 1966. Unlike Hurst, however, Mbappé’s three-goal effort came in a losing match, as France lost to Lionel Messi and Argentina in a penalty shootout.
Messi joined the hat trick club during the 2026 World Cup, scoring three goals against Algeria in the group stage.
Below is a list of every hat trick recorded in FIFA World Cup history.
June 16, 2026: Lionel Messi (Argentina) in 3-0 win vs. Algeria in group stage
Dec. 18, 2022: Kylian Mbappé (France) in 3-3 draw vs. Argentina in final (lost on penalty kicks)
Dec. 6, 2022: Gonçalo Ramos (Portugal) in 6-1 victory vs. Switzerland in Round of 16
June 24, 2018: Harry Kane (England) in 6-1 win vs. Panama during the group stage
June 15, 2018: Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) in 3-3 draw against Spain during the group stage
June 25, 2014: Xherdan Shaqiri (Switzerland) in a 3-0 victory over Honduras during the group stage
June 16, 2014: Thomas Müller (Germany) in a 4-0 win vs. Portugal during the group stage
June 17, 2010: Gonzalo Higuain (Argentina) in a 4-1 victory against South Korea during the group stage
June 10, 2002: Pauleta (Portugal) in a 4-0 win over Poland during the group stage
June 1, 2002: Miroslav Klose (Germany) in an 8-0 victory against Saudi Arabia during the group stage
June 21, 1998: Gabriel Batistuta (Argentina) in a 5-0 win over Jamaica during the group stage
June 28, 1994: Oleg Salenko* (Russia) in a 6-1 victory against Cameroon during the group stage
June 21, 1994: Gabriel Batistuta (Argentina) in a 4-0 victory against Greece during the group stage
June 23, 1990: Tomas Skuhravy (Czechoslovakia) in a 4-1 win over Costa Rica during the Round of 16
June 17, 1990: Michel (Spain) in a 3-1 victory against South Korea during the group stage
June 18, 1986: Emilio Butragueno* (Spain) in a 5-1 victory against Denmark during the Round of 16
June 15, 1986: Igor Belanov (Soviet Union) in a 4-3 loss to Belgium during the Round of 16
June 11, 1986: Gary Lineker (England) in a 3-0 win against Poland during the group stage
June 8, 1986: Preben Elkjaer (Denmark) in a 6-1 victory over Uruguay during the group stage
July 5, 1982: Paolo Rossi (Italy) in a 3-2 win against Brazil during the second group stage
June 28, 1982: Zbigniew Boniek (Poland) in a 3-0 win against Belgium during the second group stage
June 20, 1982: Karl-Heinz Rummenigge (West Germany) in a 4-1 victory over Chile during the group stage
June 15, 1982: Laszlo Kiss (Hungary) in a 10-1 win over El Salvador during the group stage
June 11, 1978: Teofilo Cubilas (Peru) in a 4-1 victory against Iran during the group stage
June 3, 1978: Rob Rensenbrink (Netherlands) in a 3-0 victory over Iran during the group stage
June 19, 1974: Andrzej Szarmach (Poland) in a 7-0 victory against Haiti during the group stage
June 18, 1974: Dusan Bajevic (Yugoslavia) in a 9-0 win against Zaire during the group stage
June 10, 1970: Gerd Müller (West Germany) in a 3-1 victory over Peru during the group stage
June 7, 1970: Gerd Müller (West Germany) in a 5-2 win against Bulgaria during the group stage
July 30, 1966: Geoff Hurst (England) in a 4-2 win against West Germany in the final
July 23, 1966: Eusebio* (Portugal) in a 5-3 victory against South Korea during the quarterfinals
June 3, 1962: Florian Albert (Hungary) in a 6-1 win over Bulgaria during the group stage
June 28, 1958: Just Fontaine* (France) in a 6-3 win against West Germany in the third-place match
June 24, 1958: Pelé (Brazil) in a 5-2 win over France during the semifinals
June 8, 1958: Just Fontaine (France) in a 7-3 victory against Paraguay during the group stage
June 26, 1954: Josef Hugi (Switzerland) in a 7-5 loss to Austria during the quarterfinals
June 26, 1954: Theodor Wagner (Austria) in a 7-5 win over Switzerland during the quarterfinals
June 23, 1954: Max Morlock (West Germany) in a 7-2 victory against Turkey during the group stage
June 20, 1954: Burhan Sargin (Turkey) in a 7-0 win over South Korea during the group stage
June 20, 1954: Sandor Kocsis* (Hungary) in an 8-3 win against West Germany during the group stage
June 19, 1954: Carlos Borges (Uruguay) in a 7-0 win against Scotland during the group stage
June 19, 1954: Erich Probst (Austria) in a 5-0 win against Czechoslovakia during the group stage
June 17, 1954: Sandor Kocsis (Hungary) in a 9-0 victory over South Korea in the group stage
July 9, 1950: Ademir* (Brazil) in a 7-1 win against Sweden in the final group stage
July 2, 1950: Oscar Miguez (Uruguay) in an 8-0 win over Bolivia in the final group stage
June 12, 1938: Harry Andersson (Sweden) in an 8-0 victory over Cuba during the quarterfinals
June 12, 1938: Gustav Wetterstorm (Sweden) in an 8-0 win against Cuba during the quarterfinals
June 5, 1938: Leonidas (Brazil) in a 6-5 victory over Poland in the Round of 16
June 5, 1938: Ernst Wilimowski* (Poland) in a 6-5 loss to Brazil in the Round of 16
June 3, 1934: Oldrich Nejedly (Czechoslovakia) in a 3-1 win against Germany during the semifinals
May 27, 1934: Edmund Cohen (Germany) in a 5-2 victory over Belgium during the Round of 16
May 27, 1934: Angelo Schiavio (Italy) in a 7-1 win against the United States in the Round of 16
July 27, 1930: Pedro Cea (Uruguay) in a 6-1 victory against Yugoslavia during the semifinals
July 19, 1930: Guillermo Stabile (Argentina) in a 6-3 win over Mexico during the group stage
July 17, 1930: Bert Patenaude (United States) in a 3-0 win against Paraguay during the group stage