Mbappe breaks records and extends Golden Boot lead
Kylian Mbappe moved two goals clear of Lionel Messi in the World Cup Golden Boot race after scoring twice in France’s 6-4 third-place play-off defeat to England. The double took Mbappe to 10 goals in the tournament.
That tally made him the outright record goalscorer in World Cup history with 22 goals. He surpassed Miroslav Klose’s previous mark of 16.
Messi eyes final reply
Messi sits on eight goals and will need to score twice against Spain in Sunday’s World Cup final to potentially overtake Mbappe. Both players also have four assists, which serves as the tiebreaker if they finish level on goals.
Early pace and landmark moments
The superstars set a blistering pace in the race to be the tournament’s top scorer across the USA, Canada and Mexico. Messi missed a penalty against Egypt before scoring three times in the final 13 minutes to send Argentina into the quarter-finals, then did not add to his tally against Switzerland.
Mbappe missed from the spot against Morocco in the last eight, going the same direction as Messi had, before giving France the lead after the hour mark. Jude Bellingham scored twice against Mexico in the previous round.
Bellingham finished with seven goals, level with Erling Haaland. Harry Kane scored six.
Historical context and other milestones
Golden Boot contenders have been chasing Just Fontaine’s 1958 single-tournament record of 13 goals. Only three players in World Cup history have ever hit double figures at one tournament.
Fontaine did it in 1958. Gerd Muller reached double figures in 1970, and Sandor Kocsis did so in 1954.
Haaland became Norway’s leading World Cup scorer after two games. Kane passed Gary Lineker as England’s top World Cup marksman.
Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have each played six World Cups. Ronaldo was the first to score in six, and he is the oldest player to score multiple goals in a game.
Curacao appeared as the smallest nation at a World Cup. Mexico vs South Africa produced the most red cards in an opening match with three.