Here's What Messi Needs to Snatch the Golden Boot from Mbappé

In today's 2026 World Cup final against Spain, Argentina's superstar Lionel Messi isn't just playing for a second consecutive World Cup title; he's also vying for his first-ever World Cup Golden Boot.

Currently, the Albiceleste captain sits second in the scoring charts with eight goals and four assists. Ahead of him is France's Kylian Mbappé, who boasts ten goals and four assists. This means that tonight, the 39-year-old Messi needs at least three goal contributions to become the tournament's top scorer: either a hat-trick or two goals and an assist. Two goals alone won't suffice, as in the event of an equal number of goals and assists, playing time is the tie-breaker. The Frenchman has spent 769 minutes on the pitch, compared to the Argentine's 712. This implies that if Messi plays more than 57 minutes today, he will fall behind in this metric, which seems almost certain.

Interestingly, Mbappé is one of only two players (alongside England's Geoff Hurst in the 1966 World Cup) to have scored a hat-trick in a World Cup final. This feat occurred in Qatar during the thrilling 3-3 draw before the penalty shootout, where Argentina ultimately triumphed over France. In that match, Messi netted two goals, but the French forward still edged him out in the Golden Boot race with an 8-7 goal tally. Today, two goals will again not be enough for the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner to claim the top scorer award. However, they would be sufficient to surpass Mbappé in the tournament's all-time scoring list, where the Frenchman currently has 22 goals to Messi's 21.