The race for the World Cup Golden Boot is already producing historic numbers, with Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland delivering a goalscoring spectacle rarely seen on football’s biggest stage.
After just two matches, Messi leads the standings with five goals, while Mbappe and Haaland have each scored four. It marks only the second time in World Cup history that three players have reached four or more goals after two games, and the first time since 1954.
Messi continued his remarkable form by scoring twice in Argentina’s victory over Austria, taking his tally to five goals in the tournament and moving to the top of the all-time World Cup scoring charts with 18 goals.
Mbappe quickly responded with a brace in France’s weather-delayed win over Iraq, coincidentally on his 100th international appearance. The French superstar now has 16 World Cup goals, drawing level with former Germany striker Miroslav Klose, who previously held the tournament record before Messi overtook him.
Haaland then joined the party, scoring twice as Norway defeated Senegal to secure qualification for the knockout stages. The Manchester City striker has now scored four goals in his first two World Cup matches and continues to strengthen his reputation as one of football’s deadliest finishers.
England captain Harry Kane, who opened the tournament with a brace, remains in contention and could close the gap when England face Ghana.
The tournament has already seen several major records fall. Messi has become the World Cup’s all-time leading scorer, Mbappe has climbed alongside Klose on 16 goals, while Haaland has become Norway’s leading World Cup goalscorer after only two appearances in the competition.
The expanded 48-team tournament format appears to be creating more opportunities for elite forwards. With additional matches and a larger field that includes lower-ranked nations, leading attackers have been presented with greater chances to add to their goal totals.
Attention is also turning towards another historic milestone. France’s Just Fontaine still holds the record for most goals scored in a single World Cup with 13 in 1958. Only Fontaine, Germany’s Gerd Muller and Hungary’s Sandor Kocsis have ever reached double figures in a single tournament.
Given the current scoring pace of Messi, Mbappe and Haaland, that exclusive list could soon gain new members.
Haaland’s rapid rise has been particularly impressive. The Norwegian has scored 59 goals in 52 international appearances and is only the sixth player in World Cup history to score multiple goals in each of his first two tournament matches.
While Messi’s record-breaking exploits have dominated headlines, the performances of Mbappe and Haaland suggest the battle for the Golden Boot could go down to the latter stages of the competition.
For now, the trio have established themselves as the tournament’s most feared attackers, setting up what could become one of the greatest Golden Boot races the World Cup has ever witnessed.
