2026 World Cup: Mbappe, Messi Tied for Golden Boot As Kane and Dembele Keep Pace
- France winger Kylian Mbappe scored a brace against Sweden in the Round of 32 to draw level with Argentine legend Lionel Messi on six goals
- Norwegian forward Erling Haaland and England forward Harry Kane currently sit in third place in the Golden Boot race
- Les Bleus winger Ousmane Dembele and Brazil winger Vinicius Junior are also tied on four goals
The race for the 2026 World Cup Golden Boot has taken another dimension following the performance of star players in the knockout stages.
Real Madrid winger Kylian Mbappe scored a brace against Sweden in France's Round of 32 victory to draw level with Argentina's Lionel Messi on six goals at the top of the scoring charts.
Norway striker Erling Haaland scored the winning goal against Ivory Coast to increase his goal tally to five while Paris Saint-Germain forward Ousmane Dembele stands on four goals.
Source: Getty Images
Real Madrid winger Vinicius Junior is also in contention with four goals following his display in Brazil's comeback win over Japan in the Round of 32.
Details of 2026 World Cup Golden Boot Standings
5) Vinicius Junior (4 goals)
Vinicius Junior has scored four goals for Brazil at the ongoing 2026 World Cup.
The Real Madrid winger has been one of the Selecao's standout performers, using his pace, dribbling ability and finishing to help Brazil reach the knockout stages.
He scored a brilliant equaliser against Morocco, followed it up with a goal and an assist against Haiti, then netted twice against Scotland.
4) Ousmane Dembele (4 goals)
Ousmane Dembele has found the net four times for France. The reigning Ballon d'Or winner scored once against Iraq before producing a stunning hat-trick in France's emphatic group-stage victory over Norway.
Source: Getty Images
The Paris Saint-Germain star's performances have been instrumental in Les Bleus' progression to the Round of 16. He failed to score against Senegal and Norway.
3) Erling Haaland (5 goals)
Erling Haaland has scored five goals in his maiden FIFA World Cup campaign with Norway.
The Manchester City striker bagged a brace against Iraq, scored twice against Senegal, and netted the decisive winner against Ivory Coast in the Round of 32 to keep Norway's dream alive, per Al Jazeera.
Haaland failed to register his name on the score sheet against two-time World Cup winners.
2) Lionel Messi (6 goals)
Lionel Messi has continued to defy age by leading Argentina's charge with six goals at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The 38-year-old opened the tournament with a hat-trick against Algeria before adding two goals against Austria and another strike against Jordan.
Source: Getty Images
Messi is currently tied at the top of the Golden Boot standings as he aims to lead Argentina to back-to-back World Cup titles.
1) Kylian Mbappe (6 goals)
Kylian Mbappe has also scored six goals to share the lead in the Golden Boot race.
The France captain netted twice against Senegal in the group stage before adding further goals, including a brace in the 3-0 Round of 32 victory over Sweden.
The Real Madrid winger also has two assists, giving him the edge over Messi in the Golden Boot tiebreaker, per ESPN.
Kane scores 13th World Cup goal, surpasses Pele
Legit.ng earlier reported that England captain Harry Kane etched his name into FIFA World Cup history by scoring his 13th World Cup goal during the Three Lions' 2-1 victory over DR Congo in the Round of 32.
The strike saw Kane move past Brazilian legend Pele, who ended his World Cup career with 12 goals across four tournaments between 1958 and 1970.
Source: Legit.ng
