A Golden Boot race for the ages - but who will come out on top?

The 2026 World Cup is witnessing a historic race for the Golden Boot, with stars like Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, and Erling Haaland scoring at record-breaking rates. Messi has notably become the all-time leading goalscorer in World Cup history.
Why it matters
This tournament is being recognized as a rare moment in sports history where multiple generational talents are simultaneously setting new performance benchmarks.
Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Kylian Mbappe (4), Lionel Messi (5) and Erling Haaland (4) have scored 13 goals between them at the 2026 World Cup
The article is a standard sports report focusing on statistics and player performance.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in