Kylian Mbappe once again displayed his top form to help France reach their third consecutive semifinal in the FIFA World Cup when they beat Morocco 2-0 in the first quarterfinal in Foxborough, USA, on Thursday (July 9). While he scored one himself, he also assisted Ousmane Dembele to score another, which put the ace forward at the top of the race for the Golden Boot.

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The 27-year-old France captain now has eight goals in the tournament, besides three assists, which puts him ahead of his Argentina counterpart Lionel Messi, who has eight goals and one assist.

Mbappe also became the first player to score at least eight goals in two separate editions of the World Cup. In 2022, he won the Golden Boot with a tally of eight, beating Messi by one. Apart from Mbappe and Messi, Guillermo Stabile (Argentina) and Ronaldo (Brazil) have scored eight goals in a World Cup.

FIFA World Cup 2026 Golden Boot race: After France-Morocco QF game

Kylian Mbappe (France) 8 goals (ahead of Messi by virtue of three assists against the latter’s one)

Haaland has 7, Harry Kane 6

Norway’s Erling Haaland, who single-handedly destroyed Brazil’s hopes in the Round of 16, is in third position at the moment with seven goals. He is followed by England captain Harry Kane, who has six goals. Norway will lock horns with England in the third quarter-final in Miami on Saturday (July 11), meaning it will be the final game for either team.

A thrilling clash is on the cards with both players aiming to give their best.

Dembele reaches 5

Dembele, who scored a hat-trick against Norway in the group stage, took his tally to five after Thursday’s game.

Five players have registered four goals each, including England’s Jude Bellingham, who netted a brace against Mexico in the Round of 16. Others in the list are: Vinicius Junior (Brazil), Julian Quinones (Mexico), Ismail Sarr (Senegal) and Mikel Oyarzabal (Spain).

Of them, only Oyarzabal can add to his tally as Spain take on Belgium in the second quarterfinal in Inglewood on Friday (July 10).

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Fourteen players have scored three goals so far, including Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo, whose campaign ended in the Round of 16. Twenty-seven have two, while 118 have one to their credit.

Who gets the Golden Boot?

The Golden Boot will be awarded to the player who scores the most goals in the tournament. If two or more players score the same number of goals, the number of assists (as determined by the members of the FIFA Technical Study Group) shall be decisive.

If names still cannot be separated, the total minutes played in the tournament will be considered, with the player who appeared for fewer minutes ranked before the others.