World Cup 2026: Did Lionel Messi deserve a red card before scoring his historic hat trick vs. Algeria?

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Argentina's first game in the 2026 World Cup was a historic one. Star Lionel Messi scored his first-ever World Cup hat trick. In the process, he tied Germany's Miroslav Klose for the most goals in World Cup history.

But should that record-tying performance have been allowed to happen?

Following the contest — a 3-0 win by Argentina — there's been an increased focus on an early interaction between Messi and Algerian defender Aissa Mandi, one some commentators have argued should have resulted in Messi receiving a red card for his actions.

The incident occurred with Argentina up 1-0. After roughly 31 minutes of match time, Messi appeared to kick Mandi directly in a calf during a challenge. Mandi immediately went to the ground and Algeria was awarded a free kick.

But given the way things looked on replay, some argued Messi deserved a harsher punishment for his antics.

ESPN analysts Alejandro Moreno and Nedum Onuoha argued Messi deserved a red card for the play. Onuoha was more measured in his response, saying, "Yeah, it probably should have been a red card, in my opinion." Onuoha didn't put the blame on the referees at the game, saying it was plausible they missed the contact in real time. He did, however, question why the video refs didn't step in after watching Messi kick Mandi in the calf.

Moreno was far more demonstrative in his assessment, saying Messi, "100 percent [deserved] a red card." Moreno added that the lack of punishment was an example of star players getting "preferential treatment" in the World Cup.

Had Messi been given a red card, he would have been ejected from the contest with just one goal. Additionally, Messi would have been suspended for Argentina's next game, meaning he would have had to wait until June 27 — at the absolute earliest — to tie or break Klose's record.

Argentina may have won the game without Messi, though that's up for debate considering he would have been forced to leave with his team up just 1-0. His absence almost certainly would have affected the goal differential for Argentina moving forward.

Argentina and Messi are searching for their second-straight World Cup win. After coming close multiple times over his career, Messi was able to push Argentina to a World Cup victory back in 2022.

If his first game of the 2026 World Cup was any indication, Messi is set on a repeat, and is playing free and easy after his 2022 World Cup victory. That could lead to an even bigger performance for Messi than usual at the event … but only if he can stay on the pitch.

After Tuesday's close call, Messi may want to avoid putting himself in more questionable situations moving forward. There will likely be an increased focus on his challenges after he got off light vs. Algeria.

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