Argentine star Lionel Messi succeeded in becoming the all-time top scorer in the World Cup, after raising his tally to 19 goals, surpassing Klose.
The achievement came after a strong scoring debut by Messi in the current edition, as he scored the first hat-trick in his World Cup career against Algeria, then added a brace against Austria, before scoring a goal against Jordan at the end of the group stage.
Thus, Messi reached 19 goals in 6 World Cup participations starting in 2006, through the 2010, 2014, 2018 and 2022 editions, all the way to the 2026 edition, during 29 matches.
But the struggle for top scorers does not stop with Messi, as Frenchman Kylian Mbappé continued his rapid rise in the historical list, after jumping to second place with 18 goals.
Mbappe has scored 6 goals so far in the current edition, through 3 consecutive braces against Senegal, Iraq and Sweden, reaching this tally in only 18 matches in 3 World Cup editions.
Mbappe had scored 4 goals in the 2018 edition, then 8 goals in the 2022 World Cup, before boosting his numbers in the current tournament, making him a strong candidate to compete with Messi for the top spot in the future, in light of his high scoring average.
Miroslav Klose fell to third place with 16 goals, which he scored in 24 matches during 4 editions between 2002 and 2014, the edition in which he won the title with Germany.
Brazilian Ronaldo ranks fourth with 15 goals in 19 matches, after participating in 4 World Cup editions, scoring 4 goals in 1998, 8 goals in 2002, and 3 goals in 2006, noting that he was crowned champion in 1994 without scoring goals.
As for fifth place, it goes to West German legend Gerd Muller, with 14 goals in only 13 matches, during the 1970 and 1974 editions.
In sixth place is Frenchman Just Fontaine with 13 goals, all of which he scored in one edition in 1958 in just 6 matches, a record that still stands in the history of the World Cup.
English striker Harry Kane shares the same position, after raising his tally to 13 goals, including 5 goals in the 2026 World Cup, in addition to 6 goals in the 2018 edition and two goals in 2022.
Kane is ahead of Brazilian Pele, who ranks eighth with 12 goals in 14 matches across 4 World Cup editions.
The list then includes prominent names such as German Jurgen Klinsmann and Hungarian Sandor Kocsis, with 11 goals each, and then a group of scorers who scored 10 goals, including Gabriel Batistuta, Cristiano Ronaldo, Gary Lineker and Thomas Muller.
The list of scorers of 9 goals also includes big names such as Roberto Baggio, Eusebio, Jairzinho, Paolo Rossi, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, and David Villa, according to the official website of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA). (Sky News)
