For a while it looked like it was going to be Lionel Messi’s World Cup. Defying his age, the 39-year-old Argentinian superstar scored eight goals, (briefly) became the all-time leading goalscorer in World Cup history and carried his team to yet another – his third – World Cup Final. In the end, it was not to be, though. His Argentina side was thoroughly outplayed by Spain in the final, Messi barely touched the ball and – due to Kylian Mbappé scoring twice in the third-place playoff on Saturday – he lost out on the World Cup goalscoring record and the Golden Boot for the best goalscorer at this tournament.
Instead Kylian Mbappé, 12 years Messi’s junior, added the record to his impressive resume. The French captain scored 10 goals at the 2026 World Cup, bringing his total to a historic 22 goals in as many appearances. With Mbappé already at 12 goals coming into the tournament, the previous record – held by Miroslav Klose at 16 goals – was always likely to fall, but it was ultimately shattered by both Mbappé and Messi, now at 22 and 21 goals, respectively, with the former having at least one World Cup to add to his tally.
