The FIFA World Cup 2022 concludes on Sunday (December 18), with Argentina and France taking center stage. While the world's attention is focused on who will win the World Cup, fans' attention will also be drawn to individual honors. The Golden Boot title, presented to the tournament's top scorer, will be contested between Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe, who have five goals each to their names.
Messi and Mbappe both have been outstanding for their countries as they compete for World Cup glory and the Golden Boot. The Argentine talisman has five goals, although he missed a penalty in the group stage that would have put him ahead of Frenchman Mbappe. Messi has never won the Golden Boot, and if Mbappe does not score or assist in the final, he might take the honor.
Mbappe, on the other hand, will need to assist at least one goal in the final to be considered for the Golden Boot, as he too has five goals. However, if both Mbappe and Messi finish up with the same number of goals, it will be the assist that determines the fate of the Golden Boot. If this is the case, Messi will be the winner because he has three assists compared to Mbappe's two.
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Both Messi and Mbappe's teammates, Julian Alvarez and Olivier Giroud, are in contention for the Golden Boot, with four goals apiece. If any player scores a brace or a hat-trick, he will undoubtedly win the Golden Boot. Both Giroud and Alvarez have four goals in the competition and will be vying for the big reward as well as World Cup success.
Golden Boot Race
Lionel Messi – 5 goals
Kylian Mbappe – 5 goals
Olivier Giroud – 4 goals
Julian Alvarez – 4 goals
Winners in the past
The Golden Boot trophy was first awarded at the 1982 World Cup in Spain.
1982: Paolo Rossi - Italy: 6 goals
1986: Gary Lineker - England: 6 goals
1990: Salvatore Schillaci - Italy: 6 goals
1994: Oleg Salenko and Hristo Stoichkov - Russia and Bulgaria: 6 goals
1998: Davor Suker - Croatia: 6 goals
2002: Ronaldo - Brazil: 8 goals
2006: Miroslav Klose - Germany: 5 goals
2010: Thomas Muller - Germany: 5 goals
2014: James Rodríguez - Colombia: 6 goals
2018: Harry Kane - England: 6 goals
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