Messi, Mbappé and Haaland lead World Cup 2026 scoring race as knockout stage kicks off

Lionel Messi (Argentina) and Kylian Mbappé (France) top the FIFA World Cup 2026 Golden Boot race with five and four goals respectively, while Norway’s Erling Haaland matches Mbappé with four goals. Their totals place them ahead of a cluster of players including Germany’s Deniz Undav, who has three goals and two assists despite limited minutes, and other forwards from Brazil, Canada and Switzerland. The prolific scoring comes as the tournament moves into the knockout phase.

The first round‑of‑16 match has been set for Sunday at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, where South Africa will face Canada at 12:00 local time (22:00 Romania). The fixture follows the group‑stage completions that saw teams such as Mexico, Germany, France and Norway qualify for the last‑16.

Both the individual scoring contest and the upcoming elimination match are drawing global attention as the World Cup progresses toward its quarter‑finals and final in July.