World Cup 2026 Golden Boot: Mbappe v Messi v Haaland standings as Kane joins thrilling race to finish top scorer

The race for the golden boot at the World Cup is hurtling towards an epic contest during the knockout stage as Kylian Mbappe went back ahead of Lionel Messi at the top of the standings, with Harry Kane and Erling Haalandalso very much in the race.

The stars continue to dominate at this tournament, none more so than Mbappe, who got up and running with a brace against Senegal before notching another against Iraq, and a third double against Sweden in the round of 32. He then added another in the last 16, scoring a crucial goal from the spot against Paraguay to take his tally to seven.

His two assists have him ahead of Messi, who has regardless sparkled in North America in also scoring seven goals. His opening hat-trick against Algeria was followed by a double against Austria – a game in which he highlighted one of his greatest traits, resilience, after a penalty miss, to break the all-time World Cup scoring record. Another goal arrived off the bench against Jordan, before he inevitably scored in their slender last-32 win over Cape Verde.

Elsewhere, Haaland scored for the 13th straight international when he netted an 86th-minute winner in Norway’s last-32 clash with Ivory Coast to send his side into the next round and move on to five goals for the tournament. Harry Kane is right there with him, too, having saved England with a double against DR Congo.

Mikel Oyarzabal threw his hat into the ring as his brace against Austria brought his total to four, and while Cristiano Ronaldo does have some catching up to do, he scored from the spot in his side’s dramatic knockout win over Croatia to keep himself somewhat into the mix.

If players are tied for goals, the number of assists will determine who ranks higher. If there is still a tie, it comes down to minutes played and the goals-per-minute ratio. Here are the latest 2026 World Cup golden boot standings: