2026 World Cup Golden Boot Race: Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland Light Fire Under Lionel Messi’s Seat

The battle for the World Cup Golden Boot is heating up, with Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi now tied at the top of the scoring charts with six goals.

The two global superstars have each found the net six times in the tournament across North America. Messi went ahead after coming on as a substitute to score in Argentina's 3-1 Group J victory over Jordan on Saturday.

In what is surely his final World Cup at age 39, Messi has been in historic form. He is the first player ever to score in seven consecutive World Cup matches. Earlier in the tournament, his brace against Austria—which came after an uncharacteristic penalty miss—saw him surpass German legend Miroslav Klose as the all-time leading scorer in World Cup finals history.

The Argentine icon began his sixth World Cup campaign with a spectacular hat-trick against Algeria, a match in which he was fortunate to avoid an early red card for a heavy tackle.

The Golden Boot race is shaping up to be one of the most exciting in recent memory. France's Ousmane Dembele has also thrown his hat into the ring, scoring a brilliant hat-trick against Norway.

However, his compatriot Mbappe remains a primary contender, adding two goals to his tally in a clinical performance that saw Les Bleus eliminate Sweden from the competition on Wednesday, winning 3-0 as he moved on six goals, same as Messi.

Meanwhile, Norway striker Erling Haaland is hot on the heels of Messi and Mbappe as he has now netted five goals, having scored the winner as the Norwegians beat Ivory Coast 2-1 to advance to the Round of 16.

Brazil forward Vinicius Jr and France forward Ousmane Dembele are not far behind on four goals each while a host of players are on three.

6 Goals: Lionel Messi (Argentina) & Kylian Mbappe (France)

5 Goals: Erling Haaland (Norway)

4 Goals: Vinicius Jr (Brazil) & Ousmane Dembele (France)

3 Goals: Deniz Undav (Germany), Johan Manzambi (Switzerland), Ismaila Sarr (Senegal), Cody Gakpo (Netherlands), Brian Brobbey (Netherlands), Matheus Cunha (Brazil), Jonathan David (Canada), Ismael Saibari (Morocco), Elijah Just (New Zealand), Kai Havertz (Germany), Yoane Wissa (DR Congo) & Harry Kane (England)