Kylian Mbappé Wins Second Straight World Cup Golden Boot Despite France's Semi-final Exit

Key Takeaways

• French football captain Kylian Mbappe finished the 2026 World Cup as the leading goal scorer of the tournament with 10 goals and won the coveted Golden Boot.
• The 27-year-old forward became the first player to win the Golden Boot award twice in a row.

As the curtain came down on the Football World Cup 2026, Spain emerged as the World Champions for the second time beating Argentina 1-0 in the finals. In the post-match awards ceremony, all eyes were on the player who wins the coveted Golden Boots and it was the French captain, Mbappe that walked away with the glory for the second time in a row.

The 27-year-old, Real Madrid player ended his 2026 World Cup campaign with 10 goals, including two in the third-place play-off match against England, which France lost 6-4 on Saturday. Although France fell short of making their place in the final, Mbappe's tally of goals remained out of reach for others in the contention for the race for Golden Boot after Argentina captain Lionel Messi could not add any goal to his tally during his team’s 1-0 loss to Spain.

Messi finished the competition with eight goals, while Norwegian striker Erling Haaland and English midfielder Jude Bellingham remained tied on seven goals each. England team captain, Harry Kane, and Mbappe’s teammate Ousmane Dembelle finished with six goals each.

While France may not have had the results they wanted, their captain, Kylian Mbappe was in red hot form and he enjoyed a prolific campaign at the grandest football tournament. He showed the world why he is one of the most feared players from the first match itself, as he scored twice in France’s 3-1 victory over Senegal.

He kept adding to his goal scoresheet in games against Iraq, Sweden, Paraguay and Morocco. France’s hopes of lifting the World Cup ended after their 2-0 semi-final defeat to the eventual champions Spain. But Mbappe finished the tournament strongly by scoring twice against the The Lions in the third-play off match after trailing 4-0 at half time.

The Top Scorers at the Football World Cup 2026

Award Winners at the Football World Cup 2026