2026 World Cup: How Many Goals Will Lionel Messi Need to Win Golden Boot After Kylian Mbappe Brace?
- Lionel Messi heads into the 2026 World Cup final with both the trophy and Golden Boot still within reach
- Kylian Mbappe strengthened his position after scoring twice against England in the third-place playoff
- FIFA's Golden Boot rules could make assists and minutes played decisive if both stars finish level on goals
Lionel Messi will have more than the FIFA World Cup trophy on his mind when Argentina face Spain in Sunday's blockbuster final at MetLife Stadium.
The Argentina captain remains in contention for the tournament's Golden Boot, but Kylian Mbappe's brilliant brace in France's third-place playoff against England has made the challenge significantly tougher.
Source: Getty Images
According to the BBC, while Mbappe's goals were not enough to prevent Les Bleus from suffering a 6-4 defeat, they strengthened the Real Madrid star's grip on the race for the competition's top scorer award.
Mbappe raises the bar before the final
Mbappe finished France's campaign with 10 goals, extending his lead at the top of FIFA's Golden Boot standings.
Messi, who has scored eight goals during Argentina's run to the final, now has only one opportunity to overturn the deficit.
For the Argentine legend to finish above Mbappe outright, he must score three goals against Spain in the final. A hat-trick would take him to 11 goals and secure the award regardless of any other statistic.
There is, however, another route.
If Messi scores twice and also provides one assist, he would finish level with Mbappe on 10 goals but edge ahead in the Golden Boot race through FIFA's tiebreaking rules.
How FIFA decides the Golden Boot
The Golden Boot is awarded to the player who scores the most goals during the tournament.
According to The Mirror, if two players finish with the same number of goals, FIFA first considers the number of assists provided.
At present, both Messi and Mbappe have four assists, meaning another assist from the Argentina captain would become decisive if he scores twice in the final.
Should they also finish level on assists, the next tiebreaker is the number of minutes played throughout the tournament.
Mbappe completed his World Cup campaign after playing 769 minutes across France's eight matches.
Messi had accumulated 712 minutes before the final, but because he is expected to play most, if not all, of Sunday's showdown, he is likely to finish with more minutes than the Frenchman. That means the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner realistically needs either a hat-trick or two goals plus an assist to claim his first World Cup Golden Boot.
Mbappe extends historic World Cup record
Beyond this year's tournament, Mbappe also enhanced his place in World Cup history.
The French captain now boasts 22 career World Cup goals, the highest tally ever recorded, achieved across only three editions of the tournament.
Messi remains the closest active challenger with 21 World Cup goals spread across six tournaments, highlighting another remarkable rivalry between two of football's greatest players.
Argentina coach sends message to Messi ahead final
Legit.ng previously reported that Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni praised Lionel Messi ahead of the World Cup final, describing the veteran captain as one of football's greatest-ever players.
The coach said reaching another World Cup final at the age of 39 underlines Messi's extraordinary longevity and urged football fans to appreciate the Argentine icon while he is still playing at the highest level.
Source: Legit.ng
