Mbappé breaks Messi's World Cup goals record with double against England

Record-breaking night

On 18 July 2026, in the third-place play-off against England, Kylian Mbappé scored twice to become the outright all-time leading goalscorer in World Cup history. His first goal of the match drew him level with Lionel Messi on 21 goals; his second, later in the game, moved him to 22 and broke the record that Messi had held for less than a month. The French captain, playing in his third World Cup at age 27, now has 22 goals from 22 appearances, a perfect ratio of one goal per game. He is also France's all-time leading scorer with 66 international goals, a mark he set earlier in the tournament.

The race with Messi

Messi had claimed the record on 22 June 2026, when he scored in Argentina's 2-0 group-stage win over Austria, surpassing the previous mark of 16 set by Germany's Miroslav Klose. The Argentine then extended his tally in the round of 16 against Egypt on 7 July, reaching 21 goals. Mbappé, who had entered the tournament with 12 World Cup goals, added nine in the group stage and knockout rounds before the England match, setting up the head-to-head duel. The two superstars have traded the record across the tournament, with Messi's 21 goals coming from 33 matches (0.64 per game) and Mbappé's 22 from exactly half as many appearances.

Mbappé's tournament dominance

Mbappé's double against England also cemented his position as the top scorer of the 2026 edition. He now has 10 goals in the tournament, two clear of Messi, who sits on eight. The Frenchman's scoring run includes a hat-trick in the group stage and crucial strikes in the knockout phase. His 10-goal haul is the highest by any player at a single World Cup since Just Fontaine's 13 for France in 1958, a record that stood until Gerd Müller's 10 in 1970 (though Müller's total was later surpassed). Mbappé has scored in all 22 of his World Cup appearances, a streak unmatched in the modern era. He is the first Frenchman to hold the all-time World Cup scoring record since Fontaine, who netted 13 times in six matches in 1958.

What comes next

Messi will have an immediate chance to reclaim the record when Argentina face Spain in the World Cup final on 19 July. A single goal would draw him level with Mbappé on 22, and any further strike would put him back on top. The final, scheduled for 21:00 local time, will thus carry an extra layer of personal history alongside the trophy. For Mbappé, the record is secure for now, but the 27-year-old will likely have at least one more World Cup to extend his lead. The previous French record-holder, Just Fontaine, scored all 13 of his World Cup goals in a single tournament; Mbappé has already surpassed that mark across three editions.