Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi are playing cat and mouse in the FIFA World Cup 2026. After going ahead of Messi with his goal against Paraguay, the French superstar was dethroned when the Argentine captain scored the equaliser against Egypt.
Mbappe, who plays for Real Madrid, ensured that he take the top spot again as the 25-year-old scored one in France’s 2-0 victory over Morocco on their way into the FIFA World Cup 2026 semifinal.
Both Mbappe and Messi are level on eight goals each but the Frenchman takes the top spot in the Golden Boot (most goals) standings owing to his three assists as compared to one by the Argentinean. The result ends Morocco’s impressive run after another historic World Cup campaign.
In the semifinals, France will take on either Spain or Belgium.
List of records broken by Kylian Mbappe
France captain Kylian Mbappe became the youngest player to make 20 FIFA World Cup appearances and the fastest player to reach 20 goals in the tournament’s history.
Mbappe’s goal marked another milestone in his remarkable World Cup journey, taking his tally to 20 goals across the 2018, 2022 and 2026 editions. The France captain moved within one goal of Messi’s all-time World Cup scoring record of 21 goals.
This was Mbappe’s eighth goal in FIFA World Cup 2026. Mbappe’s eighth goal of the 2026 World Cup also saw him join Argentina’s Messi at the top of the Golden Boot race.
Mbappe has scored the winning goal in eight FIFA World Cup matches, now the outright most of any player in history, as per OptaJoe.
Mbappe also became the first player in France’s history to be directly involved in 100 international goals, achieving the milestone with 64 goals and 36 assists for Les Bleus.