Mbappe becomes World Cup's all-time leading scorer, passes Messi with 22 goals

He's scored 9 of those goals in this tournament alone

Wire Report IntelligenceUpdated Jul 181 min read

Kylian Mbappé has leapfrogged Lionel Messi on the all-time World Cup goal-scoring chart as he scored his 21st and 22nd c Via @espn on X

What happened: Kylian Mbappe scored his 21st and 22nd career World Cup goals, first tying and then passing Lionel Messi's all-time World Cup scoring record. Mbappe now sits at 22 goals across his World Cup appearances, one clear of Messi's 21.

Why it matters: The record swap lands a day before Messi's Argentina plays Sunday's World Cup final, giving him a direct chance to answer back with goals of his own on the tournament's biggest stage. Mbappe has scored 9 goals in this tournament alone, the largest single-edition haul between the two.

By the numbers: Tournament goals: Mbappe 9, Messi 8. All-time World Cup goals: Mbappe 22, Messi 21.

What to watch: Messi and Argentina play the World Cup final Sunday at 3 p.m. ET, his last chance this tournament to add to his total.

Sources

@espn 2026-07-18T23:15:22.931959+00:00

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