Fastest goal in Ligue 1 history? Messi to Mbappe sees PSG in front of Lille after eight seconds

Abraham Smith

PSG are absolutely flying in Ligue 1, figuratively as favorites to win another league title but also literally.

Just seconds into the game against Lille on August 21, PSG scored one of the fastest goals in La Liga history as Kylian Mbappe scored the opening set just moments after kick-off.

He received a ball over the top from Lionel Messi and produced a chip over the keeper to essentially put the ball in the back net right after kick-off.

It’s believed to have been the fastest goal in Ligue 1 history, but there could be a problem with that claim.

The goal would be the first of a hat-trick for Mbappe in the game which would see PSG storm to victory with a monstrous 7-1 score.

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Mbappe scores a goal for PSG against Lille in eight seconds

After scoring five goals in each of their first two league games of the 2022/23 season, PSG were looking to push further towards another Ligue 1 title.

The Parisians got off to a hot start with an away game at LOSC Lille that may have set a record.

Right after the kick-off, Lionel Messi lapped the ball over the top to Mbappe, whose deft touch slid the ball brilliantly over Lille goalkeeper Leo.

The ball crossed the goal line just eight seconds into play in what could conceivably be a Ligue 1 record for the fastest goal ever.

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Was Mbappe’s goal the fastest ever in Ligue 1?

Mbappe’s goal is believed to be the fastest goal ever scored in Ligue 1 history but there is some margin for error.

What we know about Opta is that it’s at least the fastest goal scored in Ligue 1 since 2006/07, when the statistics company started collecting match data in France’s top flight.

Previously, the fastest goal in Ligue 1 history was thought to be Caen’s Michel Rio, also scoring eight seconds in the game against Cannes on 15 February 1992. Therefore, Mbappe’s goal has to be content with being officially known as the fastest goal in Ligue 1 history.

In reality, it’s possible Rio’s goal was a little quicker than Mbappe’s, but it’s quite difficult to know for sure. We can measure the time between kick-off and goal, but the official mark isn’t when the ball is repelled, it’s when the referee whistles.

Here at The Sporting News we used the video of both goals along with a stopwatch to measure the time between the kick off and the scoring of both chances. Using the video below of Rio’s 1992 strike, it looks like the goal was scored about 7.5 seconds after kick-off. It takes a little longer for Mbappe’s goal, it seems to have been scored around 8.9 seconds after kick-off.

BeIN Sports claims, in their posting of the video on social media, that the goal was the fastest in league history. Officially that is correct as the two are tied in the record books but there are questions as to whether this is really the right label.

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