MIAMI, USA — France captain Kylian Mbappé has etched his name into football history after becoming the highest goalscorer in FIFA World Cup history, taking his career tally to 22 goals during the 2026 tournament.
The 27-year-old Real Madrid forward surpassed Argentina legend Lionel Messi’s previous record of 21 World Cup goals after scoring twice in France’s dramatic 6-4 defeat to England in the third-place playoff on Saturday.
Mbappé reached the milestone in remarkable fashion, scoring his 21st goal to draw level with Messi before netting his 22nd minutes later to claim the record outright. The achievement came in just 22 World Cup appearances, compared to Messi’s 31 matches.
His latest exploits also saw him finish the 2026 FIFA World Cup with 10 goals, extending his Golden Boot lead and taking his overall World Cup tally across three tournaments to 22 goals—four in Russia 2018, eight in Qatar 2022 and 10 in North America in 2026.
In addition to becoming the tournament’s all-time leading scorer, Mbappé set another record by registering 14 goal involvements—goals and assists combined—the most by any player in a single edition of the FIFA World Cup.
Despite the individual accolades, Mbappé said he would have preferred to be playing in the World Cup final rather than the third-place match.
“I’d rather be in the final than have this record,” he said after the match, emphasizing that team success remained his priority.
The latest milestone adds to an already extraordinary World Cup career. Mbappé won the tournament with France in 2018 as a teenager, claimed the Golden Boot at Qatar 2022 after scoring a hat-trick in the final, and has now rewritten the competition’s all-time scoring record before turning 28.
While France ended its 2026 campaign in fourth place after the defeat to England, Mbappé’s record-breaking tournament further cemented his status as one of the greatest World Cup performers in football history.
