Mbappe wins historic second World Cup Golden Boot as Spain sweep major individual awards
Forward Kylian Mbappe clinched the Golden Boot of the 2026 FIFA World Cup after Lionel Messi failed to score in Argentina’s 1-0 loss to Spain in the final of the tournament at MetLife Stadium on Sunday.
Both Mbappe and Messi were on eight goals after the semi-final matches, but the former netted twice in the third-place match against England to extend his tally to 10, making him the outright top scorer of this World Cup.
The feat meant that the 27-year-old became the first player to win the World Cup Golden Boot twice, having struck eight times to finish top scorer in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Mbappe is also now the player with the most World Cup goals at 22.
Meanwhile, Spanish players clinched the majority of the individual tournament awards, with Manchester City midfielder Rodri winning the Golden Ball as the best player of the tournament.
Despite not having a goal contribution in the tournament, Rodri’s performance in the midfield for Spain was noticeable as he helped La Roja dominate all their matches in North America.
Pau Cubarsi was named the Young Player of the Tournament, while goalkeeper Unai Simon won the Golden Glove as the Best Goalkeeper of the Year after helping Spain keep seven clean sheets out of their eight World Cup matches.
Additionally, the Netherlands national team earned the FIFA Fair Play Award, which is usually awarded to the team with the best conduct on and off the pitch during competitions.
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