Lionel Messi had a mountain to climb. The Argentine magician needed either a hat-trick or two goals and an assist in the World Cup final to claim the 2026 Golden Boot. A hat-trick would have settled the matter outright, removing the need to rely on the assists tally. But no such fairy tale was written at MetLife Stadium. Argentina lost 1-0 to Spain, and Messi failed to score or provide an assist. With that, Mbappé’s place at the top of the scoring charts — and the Golden Boot award — was safely secured.
Mbappé finished the tournament with 10 goals and four assists. His brace and assist in the third-place play-off against England had extended his lead at the top of the scoring chart and heaped additional pressure on Messi heading into the final.
Going into the final, Messi had eight goals and four assists. There were essentially two paths available to him to claim the Golden Boot. The first was to score a hat-trick and overtake Mbappé in terms of goals scored outright. The second was to score twice and provide an assist — which, with both players then level on assists, would still not have been sufficient to surpass Mbappé, as the Frenchman would have retained his lead in goals. As it turned out, neither scenario came to pass. Mbappé was confirmed as the Golden Boot winner without any anxiety, claiming the award for the second time in his career.
