Lionel Messi and Jonathan David are the joint leaders in the World Cup 2026 Golden Boot standings on 3 goals each. Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland are one goal behind on 2, so the race is already tight even though the tournament is still in its early phase. Messi also needed 27 games to reach 16 World Cup goals, moving level with Miroslav Klose in the all-time standings.
The early leaderboard
GOAL framed the tournament as the start of the race for the Golden Boot, the award for the competition's top scorer. BBC Sport's standings put Messi and David at the top, with the chasing pack sitting only a goal back. That is a narrow gap for this stage of the tournament, especially with names like Kane, Mbappé and Haaland already involved.
Messi's start has been the most eye-catching of the two leaders. He has 3 goals and a 10 rating in Argentina's opening World Cup match. David has matched him on output, with a 7.6 rating reflecting a more efficient start than a headline-grabbing one.
The chasing pack behind them
Kane sits on 2 goals, and his 8.3 rating keeps England in the mix. Mbappé is also on 2 after his 13th and 14th World Cup goals came in France's 3-1 win over Senegal. Haaland joined the group on 2 as well, and he did it with just 20 touches in Norway's 4-1 win over Iraq.
That leaves the standings with a clear shape already. Messi and David are in front, but the margin is small and the names chasing them are the sort that can close a gap quickly. The next round of games will decide whether the table stays compact or starts to split.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 2 outlets. How we work →