Kylian Mbappé’s World Cup ended with France’s 0-2 semifinal loss to Spain, but the story around the tournament has not stopped there. The Real Madrid forward finished with 10 goals, won the Golden Boot for the second straight tournament and then wrote an open letter that put the defeat in collective terms.
Mbappé's open letter
Mbappé has now played in three World Cups, won one and captained France in 2026. His letter did not try to dress up the exit as anything other than a disappointment. "We are not bringing home a collective trophy. It hurts, and it will continue to sting for a while; I won't mislead you on that front," he said.
That is the blunt part of it. He also made a point of not separating himself from the team’s supporters. "And you never abandoned us, not even in the toughest moments, not even when we least deserved it. This story was written with millions of hands, not just eleven on the field, driven by the same passion," Mbappé added.
The tone matters because France reached the 2026 World Cup semifinals before losing to Spain, so this was not a failure from nowhere. It ended one step short of the final, which makes the gratitude in his message feel more grounded than ceremonial.
The record side of the tournament
The disappointment sits alongside a very different individual return. Mbappé scored 10 goals at the 2026 World Cup and won the Golden Boot for the second consecutive tournament. Gianni Infantino called him "the incredible Mbappé" after that run and said he had achieved "the double" in North America.
The wider record discussion is a little messier across the coverage. One report says he had become the World Cup’s all-time top scorer, while another says he had surpassed Lionel Messi to reach 22 World Cup goals. Either way, the underlying point is the same: this was more than a good tournament for Mbappé, it pushed him into record territory.
The surrounding reaction added another layer. Paraguayan Senator Celeste Amarilla made racist comments calling Mbappé a "colonised Cameroonian", and FIFA and French public figures moved to back him after the abuse surfaced online. That backlash is part of why the open letter landed as more than a routine thank-you note.
For France, the 2026 campaign ends with a semifinal exit and an ugly aftermath. For Mbappé, it also ends with 10 goals, a second straight Golden Boot and another reminder that his World Cup numbers keep rising even when the final result does not.
Written by Sam Whitfield with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 5 outlets. How we work →
