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Football fans await the 2026 World Cup final between Argentina and Spain today, while attention is also focused on the fierce individual battle for the Golden Boot award, which is now confined to Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe.
Mbappe ended his career at the tournament after scoring twice in England’s 6-4 third-place win over France to take his tally to 10 and lead the scoring charts, while Messi has eight before the final, leaving him with 90 minutes and possibly 120 to turn the tables.
Although some believe that scoring two goals would be enough to give Messi the title of the tournament’s top scorer, it is more complicated because FIFA regulations depend on the number of goals first, then the number of assists in the event of a tie, and if the tie continues, the player who has played the fewest minutes during the tournament will be judged.
Both Messi and Mbappe currently have 4 assists, meaning the Argentina captain, after scoring just two goals, will take his tally to 10, bringing him level with the French star for goals and assists, but Mbappe will be favored.
This is because Mbappe finished the tournament after playing 698 minutes, while Messi played 618 minutes before the final, and his participation in the final will take his tally to at least 708 minutes if the game ends in regular time, or 738 minutes if it goes to two extra halves, giving the French forward the advantage in terms of playing minutes.
Therefore, the easiest way for Messi to win the Golden Boot is to score 3 goals in the final to overtake Mbappe outright, or to score at least two goals in one goal to take him to 10 goals and 5 assists, surpassing the French star in industry standards without resorting to minutes.
The battle does not stop at the title of the top scorer of the current season, but also extends to the list of the world’s all-time scorers, after Mbappe reached 22 goals in the history of his participation in the World Cups, surpassing Messi, who has 21 goals.
The Argentina captain will have the chance to reclaim this historic record as well, as a brace in the final will take his tally to 23 goals, rejoining the all-time World Cup goalscoring charts and combining individual glory with the chance to lead his country to yet another World Cup title.
The final will also hold special significance for Messi on an individual level, as he has never won the Golden Boot award at a World Cup in his career, despite appearing in six different rounds of the tournament.
The Argentine star came close to winning the award at the 2022 World Cup when he scored seven goals to lead his country to the title, but finished second in the goalscoring rankings behind Kylian Mbappe, who finished the tournament with eight goals, while Messi won the Ballon d’Or as the tournament’s best player.
