Mbappé surpasses 20 World Cup goals and makes history against Morocco

Kylian Mbappé guided France to the semi-finals of the 2026 World Cup by scoring the opening goal and providing an assist for Ousmane Dembélé in the 2-0 victory over Morocco in Boston, bringing his tournament tally to 8 goals and 3 assists.

The evening started poorly for the France captain: in the 28th minute, Yassine Bounou saved his penalty. But Mbappé responded just before the hour mark by opening the scoring, before setting up Dembélé for the second goal.

With these 8 goals, Mbappé joins Lionel Messi at the top of the tournament’s scoring chart. More importantly, he becomes the first player in history to reach at least eight goals in two separate World Cups — a feat only nine players had achieved over the course of their entire careers. His total of 11 direct contributions (goals + assists) in this edition places him in a select group of six players who have done as well or better in a single World Cup, including Just Fontaine (15 in 1958), Gerd Müller (13 in 1970) and Sandor Kocsis (13 in 1954).

By surpassing 20 World Cup goals, Mbappé joins Messi (21 goals) in an elite category. His 12 goals in 11 knockout matches constitute an absolute record in the competition, far ahead of Leonidas (8 goals in 5 matches) and Ronaldo Nazário (8 goals in 10 matches).

With the France team, the Bondy native now has 63 goals and 38 assists, totalling 101 direct contributions — a symbolic milestone that confirms his status as France’s all-time leading scorer and provider.