Inter Miami CF Representatives Standout at FIFA World Cup 2026™
MLS Inter Miami CF

Inter Miami CF Representatives Standout at FIFA World Cup 2026™

Published on July 29, 2026 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Inter Miami CF News Release


Inter Miami CF captain Leo Messi, midfield engine Rodrigo De Paul, and goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair recently represented Argentina and Canada on the world stage at the FIFA World Cup 2026™, becoming the second, third, and fourth players in Club history to be called up to compete in the global competition.

Argentina, spearheaded by Messi's brilliance, enjoyed a thrilling run to the final as they defended the crown, while Canada made history by claiming their first points followed by reaching the knockout stage for the first time. Below, let's review our players' runs at the FIFA World Cup 2026™.

Leo Messi and Rodrigo De Paul - Argentina

Captain Messi and De Paul once again were amongst the protagonists for Argentina as the team came in as runners up.

Messi featured in each of Argentina's eight matches en route to the final, recording an impressive eight goals and four assists in the process. De Paul, meanwhile, played in seven matches, being part of the starting XI six times, and dished out an assist for Messi against Algeria in the team's first group stage fixture.

Messi once again enjoyed a World Cup campaign for the books, with the attacking maestro breaking several records. First, he became the first player to play in an unprecedented six World Cups and registered his first hat-trick in the competition in Argentina's tournament opener against Algeria. The attacking maestro also reached 16 career World Cup goals in the match, tying Miroslav Klose for the most goals in the history of the tournament, and 200 total overall appearances for Argentina as he extended his record as the nation's player with the most caps.

The team captain then followed with another fantastic performance as he bagged both goals in the 2-0 victory against Austria. Notably, Messi's brace saw him make history with another remarkable record, as he scored his record-breaking 17th and 18th World Cup goals to at the time become the FIFA World Cup™'s all-time leading men's goalscorer. He also reached two other milestones in the process, reaching 18 wins to become the player with most victories in FIFA World Cup™ tournaments, while also scoring in six appearances in a row at the tournament to tie the record for most consecutive World Cup games with a goal.

Messi added another strike in the team's 3-1 win over Jordan in their final Group J fixture as they claimed the group lead. He then began the knockout stage by making history yet again in the 3-2 Round of 32 triumph against Cape Verde. Messi reached 30 appearances to become the only player in FIFA World Cup history to achieve the feat. He also made further history with his goal in the game, becoming the first player in history to score in eight consecutive FIFA World Cup games.

Our captain then posted a goal and an assist in the thrilling 3-2 comeback against Egypt in the Round of 16, a match which saw him become the first player to score in six consecutive knockout stage matches, and overall to score nine consecutive matches in the global competition, before registering an assist in the 3-1 victory against Switzerland in the Quarterfinals to break the record for most assists in World Cup history with 10.

Messi subsequently extended his outstanding run with two assists in the comeback against England in semifinals to extend his streak to 13 consecutive games with a goal or an assist for club or country, before closing out the historic campaign in the final against Spain with a record 34th overall appearance in World Cup history.

Dayne St. Clair - Canada

Inter Miami goalkeeper St. Clair was called up for a second consecutive World Cup after featuring in the 2022 edition. St. Clair remained unused throughout the tournament, but goes down in history along with his Canada teammates as The Reds achieved the best finish yet in their nation's history.

Canada opened the tournament with a memorable campaign in Group B which saw the tournament co-hosts finish in second place with four points and a 1-1-1 record. In their first match, Canada posted a 1-1 draw against Bosnia and Herzegovina to secure the team's first point at a World Cup, followed by a resounding 6-0 rout of Qatar to claim a historic first win. The knockout stage then saw Canada defeat South Africa with a late winner in added time in the Round of 32, before bowing out in the Round of 16 against Morocco.

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