Argentina captain aims to match Ronaldo Nazário’s rare feat of multiple World Cup and Ballon d’Or titles with victory in Sunday’s 2026 final.

Argentina captain Lionel Messi is on the brink of matching a rare piece of football history as he leads the defending champions into Sunday’s 2026 FIFA World Cup final against Spain.

Victory would hand Argentina a second consecutive World Cup title and further cement Messi’s place among the greatest players the game has ever seen.

If Argentina triumph, Messi would become only the second player in history to win at least two FIFA World Cup titles and two Ballon d’Or awards — a feat currently held solely by Brazilian legend Ronaldo Nazário, who won the World Cup in 1994 and 2002 and claimed Ballon d’Or honours in 1997 and 2002.

Messi, an eight-time Ballon d’Or winner, lifted his first World Cup trophy in Qatar in 2022 and now has the opportunity to match Ronaldo’s rare achievement on football’s biggest stage.

The record has remained elusive largely due to historical restrictions and circumstances. Several multiple World Cup winners were ineligible for the Ballon d’Or before 1995, when the award was limited to European players. As a result, legends like Pelé and Garrincha were excluded, while others such as Franz Beckenbauer and Lothar Matthäus won the Ballon d’Or but did not secure two World Cup titles as players.

Since the award was opened globally, only Ronaldo has achieved the unique double — a mark Messi can now equal if Argentina overcome Spain.

A win on Sunday would not only deliver back-to-back World Cup titles for Argentina but also add another defining chapter to Messi’s extraordinary legacy.