The 2026 World Cup is getting heated and a lot of the teams we were expecting to dominate are doing so already but then one particular aspect that many didn’t consider is the World Cup Golden Boot predictions. 

For those who might have thought about it, names like Mbappe and Haaland would have definitely gotten mentioned. And yes, the Real Madrid man and City’s poacher are among the high flyers in the World Cup at the moment. 

Some names no one could have expected are there as well and at JeoTips we are looking into who could win the Golden Boot. 

Who Will Win the Golden Boot at the 2026 World Cup

Currently, there are five players in line to win the 2026 World Cup Golden Boot and there could be surprising additions on the way but the focus is on the names we have at the moment. 

Lionel Messi 

After taking his side to World Cup victory in 2022, Lionel Messi and Argentina will be looking to be the third team to win back to back World Cup trophies after Brazil in 1958 and 1962 and Italy in 1934 and 1938. 

It clearly looks like they are going to do it but most people will argue that Argentina had a fair path to the knockout stages. In their group, they played Algeria who they beat 3-0 comfortably with Messi scoring all three goals. They beat Austria 2-0 and it was all goals from Messi, and won Jordan 3-1 with Messi scoring the last goal. 

Aside from the case of having easy teams, the entire of Argentina seems to be working for Messi to get goals so he is up there as touching who is going to win the Golden Boot this World Cup. 

Erling Haaland

Haaland is already on 5 goals and we know him as a player who’s hungry for goals. Norway would be hoping the beat Ivory Coast to keep their World Cup dreams alive but it is hard to see how the team could make it all through. 

If Haaland gets some more goals on his way to the final, even without reaching the final, he could be a contender. 

Kylian Mbappe 

The Frenchman made history as the first man after Geoff Hurst (England) in 1966 vs. West Germany to score a hat-trick in the 2022 World Cup final. 

There has been a lot of fuss around Mbappe who joined Real Madrid last season with the ambition to win the UCL but hasn’t lifted a trophy with the Spanish giants in his second season running, if you aren’t counting the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Intercontinental Cup. 

Despite this, he won the Golden Boot in La Liga in his first and second season with 31 goals in his first and 25 goals in the latter. 

He is a goalscorer in every sense of the word even though those goals have not really helped his team like many argue. 

France is a different team. While Mbappe gets the goals, other positions can hold the forte and push further. So, he is determined to get more goals as his team advances. 

Ousmane Dembele 

Balon D’or winner Ousmane Dembele arrived a little late for the World Cup but not so late to not get involved in the action as he scored a hat-trick when France played Norway in their final game of the group stage. 

Dembele’s first half hat-trick + his 66th minute goal against Iran shows that he is not a name to rule out. 

In France’s first match of the group stage, against Senegal, Dembele held up a more central role and his output seemed to be poor. But after pushing him to the right, it seems Deschamps has found the key that unlocked him. 

It is clear to see that if Dembele stays fit and keeps playing on the right, then he could be a key man for France just like Mbappe. 

Vinicius Junior 

Carlos Ancellotti has a lot of names that could impact the game at anytime and help Brazil win but all the attention of Brazilians as well as fans of the country look to Vinicius Junior as arguably the most important player for Brazil. 

He currently has 4 goals for the team and watching him play shows he is hungry to score more and help his team. 

In this list, we think Vinicius has a lesser chance to win the Golden Boot because of the level of quality that the team has. Already, Neymar is gearing to supposedly continue from where Vinicius stopped to carry Brazil through the knockout stages. 

Honorable Mentions

There are names that deserve to be mentioned. The first is Cristiano Ronaldo. He scored a brace vs Uzbekistan but couldn’t find the net vs Colombia. Critics say he may not be capable of leading Portugal like he used to but Ronaldo is a player built for knockout stages of competitions and if the legend is true, we still think he can come up the ranks. 

Cunha is another name that is worthy of mention. He already has 3 goals to his name and he could be looking to add more as the competition progresses. The Manchester United winger knows a thing or two for scoring goals and he already looks like he’s brought his Premier League form into the World Cup. 

Harry Kane is certainly the most in form striker today. 3 goals in 3 matches and England look like a serious contender so we can expect more from Kane. after a very impressive season at Bayern Munich scoring 36 goals in 31 appearances, Harry Kane is set to replicate his goalscoring form. 

So who do you think will win the 2026 World Cup Golden Boot? 

For daily World Cup predictions, check out our Predictions Page to see what our experts have selected.