2026 FIFA World Cup Golden Boot Race Tracker: Mbappé Takes Lead, Messi Lurks

By Fox Sports | Created at 2026-07-18 22:28:52 | Updated at 2026-07-24 08:16:29 5 days ago

Who'll win the Golden Boot at the 2026 FIFA World Cup? The race is on for who'll score the most goals at the tournament, and it is set to be one of the tournament's most closely watched storylines.

Several of the world's top forwards will be aiming to finish as the competition's leading goalscorer. Lionel Messi – now the top all-time goalscorer in FIFA men's World Cup history – led the race through the group stages. Althouhg Messi led through the majority of the knockout stage, Kylian Mbappé passed Messi with his goal in the third-place match against England.

Messi retook the Golden Boot lead with an equalizer when Argentina needed it most, to tie it 2-2 against Egypt in the late stages of the round of 16 before Argentina completed the comeback to move onto the quarterfinals. Mbappé caught back up with Messi in the second half against Morocco in their quarterfinal game when he found the net in the 60th minute.

Mbappé claimed his first lead of the tournament after his goal in the second half against England, amassing nine total goals this tournament. As Mbappé takes the lead, Messi still leads in assists, which keeps him in the race for a Golden Boot. If Mbappé wins the award, that would be his second consecutive Golden Boot. If Messi takes home the Golden Boot, it would be his first time winning the award, adding to an already incredibly-stocked trophy case.

Check out our list of all the 2026 World Cup group-stage goals, ranked!

Favorites To Win The Golden Boot

Lionel Messi: -250 (bet $10 to win $14 total)
Kylian Mbappé: +200 (bet $10 to win $30 total)
Harry Kane: +2200 (bet $10 to win $230 total)
Jude Bellingham: +3000 (bet $10 to win $310 total)
Mikel Oyarzabal: +15000 (bet $10 to win $1,510 total)