Messi, Mbappe, Haaland help 2026 FIFA World Cup set all-time record

The 2026 FIFA World Cup has become the first tournament in the competition's history to feature three different players scoring seven goals, following Erling Haaland's round-of-16 brace against Brazil.

The Norway forward scored twice to eliminate Carlo Ancelotti's side, bringing his individual tournament tally to seven goals and forcing a three-way tie in the Golden Boot race.

Haaland now sits level with Argentina captain Lionel Messi and France forward Kylian Mbappé, marking a statistical first for the international tournament.

Before the 2026 edition in North America, no World Cup had ever produced three players with seven or more goals in a single campaign.

The closest the tournament previously came to the milestone was in 1970, when West Germany's Gerd Müller (10) and Brazil's Jairzinho (7) achieved the feat, and again in 2022, when Mbappé (8) and Messi (7) surpassed the seven-goal threshold.

The scoring deadlock strengthens the theme of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which appears to be a dancing with the stars, with all three forwards who lead the way accounting for the bulk of their teams' offensive output.

Haaland reached his seven-goal tally by scoring a group-stage brace against Iraq and Senegal, a round-of-32 winner against Ivory Coast, and his recent double against Brazil.

Messi, who won the 2022 FIFA World Cup with Argentina, accumulated his seven goals through a group-stage hat-trick against Algeria, a round-of-32 brace against Austria and strikes against  Jordan and Cape Verde.

Mbappé, who won the 2018 FIFA World Cup with France and, like Messi, doubles as the leader and best player, matched the total by scoring against Senegal and Iraq in the group stage before adding another more against Sweden and Paraguay in the knockout phase.

The three-way tie could still expand as the tournament progresses toward the quarter-finals.

England captain Harry Kane currently sits on five goals for the tournament, while France winger Ousmane Dembélé remains in contention with four goals.