Christoph Baumgartner made history by scoring the fastest goal ever in international football, taking just six seconds to find the net as Austria defeated Slovakia in Bratislava.
The 24-year-old midfielder skillfully maneuvered past three opponents from the kick-off and delivered a precise shot past the Slovakian goalkeeper, Martin Dubravka.
This remarkable achievement surpassed Lukas Podolski’s previous record set for Germany against Ecuador in 2013 by a second.
Austria’s victory was sealed with a late goal from Andreas Weimann, securing a fourth consecutive win for Ralf Rangnick’s team as they prepare for the upcoming Euros in Germany.
Baumgartner’s lightning-fast goal was nearly matched later that evening when Florian Wirtz scored for Germany against France with a 25-yard strike that deflected off Dayot Upamecano before hitting the crossbar and going in.
Austria’s stunning start in Bratislava sets the stage for their upcoming match against Turkey in Vienna.
While Baumgartner’s goal was faster than notable goals like Davide Gualtieri’s for San Marino against England in 1993 and Christian Benteke’s for Belgium against Gibraltar in 2017, it falls short of Shane Long’s record for the fastest Premier League goal for Southampton against Watford in 2019 (7.69 seconds) and Roy Makaay’s fastest Champions League goal for Bayern Munich against Real Madrid in March (10.12 seconds).
In non-league football, Ryan Hall of Croydon FC scored a remarkable goal straight from kick-off against Cockfosters in the London Senior Trophy, timed at 2.31 seconds by the club.
However, this achievement is not recognized by Guinness World Records, which only monitors goals in professional football for official records.
Source-BBC
