2026 World Cup: Mbappé Sets His Sights on Messi, but Watch Out for CR7’s Pride

Lionel Messi got off to a spectacular start in the World Cup. In two games, he scored a whopping five goals (while also missing a penalty). With these two incredible performances, he has become the all-time leading scorer in World Cup history with a total of 18 goals (surpassing Miro Klose, who remains at 16).

However, La Pulga isn’t the only one eyeing this prestigious record. Kylian Mbappé has his sights set on it, too. The French star responded to the Argentine with two braces in the first two group stage matches. He now has 16 goals, ranking second all-time, one ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo.

The Portuguese star has faced a lot of criticism after his disappointing performance against the DR Congo, but never bet against CR7—a player who has come through hundreds of times. Against Uzbekistan, he’ll try to prove to everyone—and, in particular, to Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé—that he, too, is in the running for the title of all-time World Cup top scorer.

A fun fact. Both Lionel Messi and CR7 are playing in their final World Cup (barring a miracle), while the Real Madrid forward, born in 1998, will still have other opportunities to make history. Furthermore, another interesting fact: of the three, he has the highest goals-per-game average of all time: 16 goals in 16 games, one goal per game. Lionel Messi scores 0.69 goals per game, while CR7 scores slightly more (0.79).