France striker Kylian Mbappe became the all-time leading goalscorer in FIFA World Cup history after scoring twice in his side’s 6-4 defeat to England in Saturday’s third-place playoff.
The 27-year-old took his World Cup tally to 22 goals, surpassing Argentina captain Lionel Messi, who has 21 heading into Sunday’s final against Spain. While Messi still has one more opportunity to add to his tally, the final is widely expected to be his last World Cup appearance, whereas Mbappe is likely to feature in future editions of the tournament.
Mbappe also finished his third World Cup campaign at the top of the Golden Boot standings with 10 goals, two more than Messi.
The Real Madrid forward reached the milestone in just 22 World Cup appearances, having scored four goals during France’s triumphant 2018 campaign and eight in 2022, when Les Bleus finished runners-up to Argentina.
Speaking about the scoring race, Mbappe said “Messi is going to score (on Sunday), that’s for sure. I’m just trying to help my team win. When you score a lot of goals at the World Cup, it puts you in a certain category.”