Copa America 2024 officially
started in the USA with the Group A match between the defending champions
Argentina and the tournament debutant Canada on Thursday. During the Copa
America 2024 opener, Argentine legend Lionel Messi set up a new tournament. He
broke a 70-year-old record to become the most-capped player in Copa America
history.
Argentina started their Copa
America 2024 campaign with a 2-0 win against Canada. While Julián Álvarez
scored the tournament opener in the 49th minute, Lautaro Martínez scored the
assurance goal for the defending champions in the 88th minute.
The 36-year-old Argentine legend, Lionel Messi, assisted Argentina’s second goal of the match. He appeared in the entire game to lead his nation to a convincing victory.
Lionel Messi: Most-capped player in Copa America
With his appearance in the Copa America 2024 opener, Lionel Messi set a new tournament record. Messi is the new record holder for most appearances in Copa America history. His latest appearance against Canada was his 35th appearance in the Copa America.
Sergio Livingstone was the previous record for most appearances in Copa America
Chilean goalkeeper Sergio Livingstone was the previous record holder for most caps in the Copa America, with 34 match appearances between 1941 and 1953. Livingstone held the record for 70 years. Before the Copa America 2024 opener, Messi equaled Livingstone’s record when he played the successful Copa America 2021 final against the hosts Brazil.
Lionel Messi is playing his seventh Copa America tournament
Copa America 2024 is Lionel
Messi’s seventh Copa America edition appearance. After debuting in the
tournament in 2007, he played in 2011, 2015, 2016, and 2019 before winning his
first Copa America trophy in 2021. In his 35 Copa America matches, Messi scored
13 goals.
Former Ecuadorian Álex Aguinaga has made more Copa America tournament appearances than Messi. Between 1987 and 2004, the midfielder appeared in eight Copa America tournaments, where he played a total of 25 matches.
