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Recent comments: {{Special:RecentChanges|namespace=1}}

Latest revision as of 09:33, 16 March 2026

Welcome to the explain xkcd wiki!
We have an explanation for all 3269 xkcd comics, and only 46 (1.4%) are incomplete. Help us finish them!

 Go to this explanation

Latest comic[edit]

Messi
Commentators agree that this will probably be the last World Cup in which Messi faces serious competition.
Title text: Commentators agree that this will probably be the last World Cup in which Messi faces serious competition.

Explanation[edit]

Ambox warning blue construction.png This is incomplete:
This page was created in Lionel Messi's 398th goal. Don't remove this notice too soon. If you can fix this issue, edit the page!

In the vein of 605: Extrapolating, this comic utilizes the incorrect application of extrapolation to humorous ends. Extrapolation is a form of estimation in which existing data points are used to estimate new data points beyond the range of the existing ones. In this case, Randall appears to have fit several data points regarding soccer superstar Lionel Messi's average goals per World Cup game to a curve using what appears to be polynomial or exponential extrapolation. It illustrates the danger of a small sample size, as the data point for "2026 (so far)" is based on only one game (the day before this comic, in his inaugural game of the 2026 World Cup, Messi scored three goals), and that data point is used to support extrapolation of a rapidly rising number of goals-per-game into the future. The data points for previous World Cups, which bounce around among various values but are all less than or equal to 1.0, are each based on many more games, and as such are likely to be much better estimates of how many goals-per-game Messi will score in the future.

As well as that, if this graph would be true, this would imply that in future games Messi would be scoring multiple goals per second, which would be impossible in real life.[citation needed]

The title text says that this World Cup is the last one in which Messi will face serious competition. This is likely true, but humorously so, as this is almost certainly Messi's last World Cup period. However, the commentators may well have been consulting the chart, and instead be referring to how if this chart was to be true, in future games Messi would theoretically score hundreds of goals, which, assuming no-one else has an exponential rate of goals (or other similar or greater level of growth), would easily beat other players. By apparently overlooking the fact that Messi is a only one of several players on his team, it may even be suggesting that, on his own, his ability can triumph over any other national team fielded in the World Cup.

Transcript[edit]

Ambox warning green construction.png This is one of 28 incomplete transcripts:
Don't remove this notice too soon. If you can fix this issue, edit the page!
[A graph is shown, with 1 axis having the numbers 1, 2, & 3 going up it, and the other having 24 unlabelled marks. There are 6 points on the graph itself, with them being labelled 2006 (.33), 2010 (0), 2014 (.57), 2018 (.25), 2022 (1), and 2026 (3), the latter having '(so far)' under it. There is a grey dotted curve going up exponentially.]
[Title of graph:]Lionel Messi [new line] world cup points per game.
[Caption below text:]At this rate, by 2040 Lionel Messi will be scoring hundreds of goals per game.

comment.png  Add comment      new topic.png  Create topic (use sparingly)     refresh discuss.png  Refresh 

Discussion

Make changes, try things out, or just have fun with the wiki here! Just leave everything above the line alone, please.


This is a test. PoolloverNathan[stalk the blue seas] 20:48, 16 March 2021 (UTC)

This is not. —While False (museum | talk | contributions | logs | rights | printable version | page information | what links there | related changes | Google search | current time: 22:11) 18:38, 17 November 2022 (UTC)
A foreign student asked me to help fight against his math teacher. That was unusual. He was in that class for just a couple of weeks. The teacher's phone number was sent to me. The student asked me to spam-call the teacher. 172.71.155.55 22:58, 18 September 2023 (UTC)

here i'm just messing around in html, ignore this

furhhfghure guyrburgryhuyvfr "rvhru"

interesting way of writing quotations xd

hmmm this one of putting "<p>" in a line break will come in handy for when i want it to start at the same place than the first line

Please beware that <p> on mediawiki also disables automatic paragraph breaks, so you need a closing </p> or you'll break automatic paragraph formatting for the rest of the page. Zmatt (talk) 22:06, 31 July 2024 (UTC)

edit: da hek did that "</div>" come from An user who has no account yet (talk) 14:14, 13 October 2023 (UTC)

hi uh its hard to get here. is this a reference to undocumented feature??? hmm... this is interesting.
108.162.241.216 02:05, 23 November 2023 (UTC)

45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


45px Soup


yum yum [citation needed]

Hiuiedeixgeyceiyedhcdiedcve {{trout}}

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Last 7 days (Top 50)

<a href=" [AT THE JULY 28TH MEETING][tab] "Cancel the meeting! Our cover is blown."> More testing: hello ​ does​this​work (yes​it​does) This isn't a good name (talk) 22:44, 28 January 2026 (UTC)

‮hi 164.58.172.158 14:21, 23 February 2026 (UTC)

What is this?????????????????????? King Pando (talk) 04:25, 10 March 2026 (UTC)‭

Hello 107.1.219.44 19:29, 29 April 2026 (UTC)
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Rules[edit]

Be a jerk!

There are a lot of comics that have set-in-stone explanations; only put one interpretation in the wiki page for each comic.

If you want to talk about a specific comic, don’t.

Please only submit material directly unrelated to xkcd and, of course, only submit material that cannot legally be posted or freely edited. On-topic or other appropriate content is subject to removal or modification at admin discretion, and users who repeatedly post such content will be blocked. Get good.

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Recent comments:

17 June 2026

N    20:55 

Talk:3260: Messi‎‎ (16 changes | history) . . (+2,494). . [SectorCorruptor‎; Scs‎; Jhamination‎; BorQhue del Sol‎; TheusafBOT‎; 93.36.179.126‎; 8.53.15.117‎; 218.102.149.116‎; 130.76.187.46‎; 69.174.184.72‎ (2×); 64.201.132.210‎ (2×); Barmar‎ (3×)]

     

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16 June 2026

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Talk:3259: Tethys‎‎ (10 changes | history) . . (+4,212). . [2a00:79e1:2e00:4f01:a8f7:3c2:a4a4:c7c3‎; 134.102.219.31‎; 130.76.187.47‎; 81.179.199.253‎ (2×); 1.170.227.28‎ (2×); 82.13.184.33‎ (3×)]

     

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