Kylian Mbappe etched his name deeper into football history on Saturday, becoming the first player to win the World Cup Golden Boot twice — but the France forward admitted the individual accolade was little consolation after his team missed the final. The 27-year-old scored 10 goals in eight games to edge out Lionel Messi in the race for top scorer, adding to the Golden Boot he won at Qatar 2022 with eight strikes. That double took Mbappe to 22 career World Cup goals, making him the men's all-time leading scorer, one ahead of Messi.
"When you score that many goals in the World Cup, it certainly takes you to a whole new level," Mbappe said after Saturday's bronze match in Miami, where he scored twice but France fell 6-4 to England. "But I would have preferred not to be the top scorer and to have played in the final. It's good for my legacy once I've retired, but right now, that's not what's on my mind."
“Mbappe wins second Golden Boot with 10 goals; Rodri named best player as Spain beat Argentina 1-0 in final.”
Mbappe's tally was the highest in a single tournament since Gerd Muller's 10 for West Germany in 1970, and only Just Fontaine (13 in 1958) and Sandor Kocsis (11 in 1954) have scored more. The Real Madrid forward hit goals against Senegal, Iraq, Sweden, Paraguay (a penalty) and Morocco before his brace in the third-place match.
Messi, 39, could have overtaken Mbappe with a hat-trick in the final on Sunday, but he failed to score as Argentina lost 1-0 to Spain in New Jersey. He finished with eight goals in eight matches. England's Jude Bellingham and Norway's Erling Haaland managed seven, while France's Ousmane Dembele and England captain Harry Kane scored six.
Spain swept the other major awards, with captain Rodri named the tournament's best player. The Manchester City midfielder, who turned 30 during the tournament, received the Golden Ball from Fifa president Gianni Infantino on the field at MetLife Stadium. It was his third major individual accolade after the 2023 Ballon d'Or and Euro 2024 Player of the Tournament.
Rodri anchored Spain's midfield in the final, earning a 9/10 rating from the Guardian, with Enzo Fernandez sent off as Argentina's hopes unravelled. Substitute Ferran Torres scored the winner in extra time, etching his name into history. Lamine Yamal, at 19, became a world champion, while Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez made three brilliant saves but could not keep out Torres's strike. Argentina later declared a national holiday after the defeat, with president Javier Milei allowing players and staff to choose a day of celebration.