Roger Milla’s long-standing record as the oldest goalscorer in FIFA World Cup history remains intact after Cristiano Ronaldo’s final appearance at the global tournament, with the Cameroon icon still topping the all-time rankings despite the Portugal captain making history by scoring at a sixth World Cup.
According to The Punch, Ronaldo, who turned 41 during the tournament, scored against Uzbekistan in Portugal’s second group-stage match at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, becoming the second-oldest player ever to score at the competition at the age of 41 years and 138 days.
The Portuguese forward added another goal from the penalty spot in Portugal’s Round of 16 victory over Croatia before his side bowed out in the quarter-finals against Spain.
That strike came when he was 41 years and 147 days old, extending his own record but still leaving him short of Milla’s remarkable milestone of 42 years and 39 days, achieved against Russia at the 1994 World Cup in the United States.
Milla first captured global attention at Italia ’90, where, at the age of 38, he scored four goals to inspire Cameroon to become the first African nation to reach a World Cup quarter-final.
His famous corner-flag celebration remains one of the tournament’s most memorable moments.
Four years later, he repeated the iconic dance after scoring against Russia, although Cameroon suffered a 6-1 defeat and exited at the group stage. More than 30 years later, his goal at 42 years and 39 days still stands as the oldest ever scored at a World Cup.
Although Ronaldo fell short of Milla’s record, his exploits reshuffled the all-time list by moving ahead of Argentina captain Lionel Messi.
Messi, who celebrated his 39th birthday during the tournament, scored against Austria on June 22 at the age of 38 years and 363 days to briefly occupy third place. However, Ronaldo’s goal against Croatia pushed the Portuguese star above him.
Messi later added goals against Jordan, Cape Verde and Egypt to take his tally at the tournament to eight, but none came at an older age than Ronaldo’s latest strike.
The 2026 World Cup also saw Croatia’s Ivan Perisic and Austria’s Marko Arnautovic join the list of the oldest scorers.
Perisic, aged 37, climbed to seventh after netting against Portugal on July 3, while fellow 37-year-old Arnautovic entered ninth place following his goal against Algeria in Austria’s final group-stage fixture.
With the 2030 World Cup scheduled to feature matches in Portugal and Argentina, there remains a slim possibility that Ronaldo or Messi could return for another shot at Milla’s record. However, such a feat would require both football greats to continue playing international football well into their forties.
