Lionel Messi breaks Instagram record for most liked post after World Cup win

Lionel Messi has claimed a new record for the most-liked Instagram post of all time. After the footballer led Argentina to World Cup victory over France on Sunday, in a match in which the 35-year-old captain also scored two goals and converted a penalty in the shoot-out that decided the game, he posted a series of 10 photos to mark the occasion.

The photographs, which include shots of Messi lifting the World Cup trophy and celebrating with his team-mates, received more than 68.5 million likes and 1.7 million comments on Instagram.

“Champions of the world! So many times I dreamed it, so much I wanted it that I still don’t fall, I can’t believe it,” Messi wrote, in Spanish, alongside the post.

“Thank you so much to my family, to all who support me and also to all who believed in us. We prove once again that Argentinians when we fight together and united we are able to achieve what we aim.

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“The merit is of this group, which is above individuals, is the strength of all fighting for the same dream that was also the one of all Argentinians ... We did it!”

The previous holder of the Instagram record was a photograph of an egg on a white background with 55.7 million likes, posted by the account @world_record_egg. It had held the record since January 2019, when it was uploaded in an attempt to become the most liked Instagram post of all time. Before that, the record holder was Kylie Jenner’s post announcing the arrival of her daughter Stormi, in 2018, which collected 18 million likes.

Other previous holders include Beyoncé’s pregnancy announcement, a Coca-Cola advertisement posted by Selena Gomez and a photo posted by Justin Beiber of him with Gomez, his girlfriend at the time.

Messi’s Instagram post was just one of several records the Paris Saint-Germain player broke at the World Cup. According to Guinness World Records, he set five other records during the tournament:

• Most World Cup matches played (26)
• Most World Cup man-of-the-match awards (11)
• Most World Cup appearances as captain (19)
• Most appearances in World Cup tournaments by a male player (5)
• First person to assist a goal at five World Cups