Kylian Mbappe continued his relentless pursuit of football history as France beat Paraguay 1-0 in the last 16 of the 2026 World Cup, scoring the winning goal to move within one goal of the table. Lionel MessiHe set the historical scoring record in the World Cup and tied with the Argentinian superstar in this year’s Golden Boot Award.The France captain calmly converted a second-half penalty in Philadelphia to send Didier Deschamps’ side into the quarter-finals, where they will face Morocco in a replay of the 2022 World Cup semi-finals. The significance of this strike goes far beyond the outcome itself. It was Mbappe’s seventh goal at the 2026 World Cup and the 19th of his World Cup career, adding to his growing list of records that continue to rank him among the greatest players in the tournament’s history.
Mbappe ends Messi’s World Cup record
France’s decisive moment came in the 70th minute when, after a VAR review, Diego Gomez was ruled to have tripped a French striker.Mbappe took a step forward from 12 yards, completing a trademark staccato run-up before steering Paraguay goalkeeper Orlando Gil in the wrong direction. This penalty resolved an originally tense round of 16 match and has huge historical significance.This goal brought Mbappe to 19 goals in just 19 appearances in his World Cup career, trailing only Lionel Messi’s 19 goals. Less than 24 hours ago, Messi became the top scorer in World Cup history when he scored his 20th World Cup goal in Argentina’s 3-2 victory over Cape Verde in the last 16.
France’s Kylian Mbappe scores a penalty kick against Paraguay during the World Cup round of 16 football match on Saturday, July 4, 2026 in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
The contrast between these two milestones is equally striking. Messi has scored 20 goals in 29 World Cup games, while the 28-year-old Mbappe has scored 19 goals in just 19 games and is still firmly in the peak of his career.
Golden Boot level after another decisive knockout goal
This penalty also significantly changes the competition for the World Cup Golden Boot award.Mbappe has seven goals at the 2026 World Cup and is joint top scorer with Messi after the Argentina captain briefly took the lead.If both players finish the game with goals, FIFA’s current tiebreaker criteria would favor the France captain, with assists ranked before minutes played. Mbappe leads the award with two assists, while Messi added one in Argentina’s win over Cape Verde. However, Messi’s statistics have been affected by some statistical corrections. It was initially believed that he ended that match (his first at the 2026 World Cup) with a goal and an assist, but official match reports later changed that record. Messi’s corner kick in overtime, which gave Argentina a 3-2 victory, was initially thought to be an assist after Cristian “Cuti” Romero celebrated his goal. However, FIFA later determined that it was an own goal by Borges and canceled Messi’s assist record.This means that if the game ends today and the two players are still tied with seven goals, Mbappe will win the Golden Boot.However, heading into the quarter-finals, the game was still up in the air. Norway forward Erling Haaland and England captain Harry Kane both remain in contention for the title with five goals each, while French winger Ousmane Dembélé has quietly climbed up to four goals and two assists to keep the Gallic outfit top of the table.Current 2026 FIFA World Cup Golden Boot Rankings
- Kylian Mbappe (France): 7 goals, 2 assists
- Messi (Argentina): 7 goals, 1 assist
- Harry Kane (England): 5 goals
- Erling Haaland (Norway): 5 goals
- Ousmane Dembélé (France): 4 goals, 2 assists
Knockout experts continue to rewrite World Cup history
Mbappe’s latest goal further cemented his impressive record in World Cup knockout football.In the game against Sweden, the Real Madrid striker already became the record holder for goals in the knockout rounds of the Men’s World Cup. Now he has tied Messi with the player with the most goals in the knockout rounds of the World Cup, with 12 goals each.Mbappe’s tally, which includes nine knockout goals and three assists, matches Messi’s overall contribution in the knockout rounds and underlines his reputation as one of football’s most important big-match performers.His seventh goal of the tournament follows four in the group stages and three more in the knockout rounds, continuing the remarkable consistency that saw him win the Golden Boot for the first time at the 2022 World Cup.France’s win also keeps Mbappe in the hunt for another World Cup title, after France narrowly lost a memorable 2022 final against Argentina despite scoring a hat-trick.Morocco head into the quarter-finals at Boston Stadium in Foxborough on Thursday, July 9, with Mbappe now just one goal away from equaling Messi’s World Cup goalscoring record and narrowly winning the closest race for the Golden Boot in the tournament’s history.
