World Cup stories: The Golden Boot race Power Rankings v2.0

We're now just two weeks out from the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and the hype is building ahead of the biggest version of the tournament ever.

Most of the 48 squads that will compete this summer have been announced — with a few notable stragglers who will all reveal their rosters within the next few days — which means we now know most of the players who will look to star on the world's biggest stage.

With that in mind, and ahead of the various friendlies that nations will play in the lead-up to the World Cup, it's time to update the DAZN News World Cup Golden Boot Power Rankings.

As a reminder, here is the first version, written 46 days ago. Let's see how much has changed during that time.

---

Harry Kane looks to lead England to glory 

All his goals from the 2018 World Cup 

---

The 2026 World Cup Golden Boot race Power Rankings v2.0

Top 5

1. Kylian Mbappé, France (—)

@equipedefrance

The French superstar should still be favoured to top the World Cup scoring charts after doing so in La Liga this season and very likely also claiming the Golden Boot in the Champions League as well.

Mbappé was the most prolific goalscorer at Qatar 2022 and should once again fill the nets for a France side aiming at global supremacy.

2. Harry Kane, England (—)

GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images

Kane keeps hold of the No. 2 spot after a stellar campaign for Bayern Munich, in which he won the Golden Boot race with nearly double the number of goals as the next best player.

The England icon has shown zero signs of slowing down now that he's in his early 30s, and as the focal point of a Three Lions attack expected to help the team make a long run this summer, Kane will get plenty of opportunities to add to his total.

3. Ferran Torres, Spain (▲2)

Getty Images

Torres spearheads a dangerous Spain team that may not have young stars Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams at full fitness to start the World Cup. That should open up more opportunities for 26-year-old Torres, who scored 21 goals across all competitions for Barcelona this season.

In addition to Yamal and Williams' potential absences to start the tournament, the reason why he's jumped up two spots from our first Power Rankings is because of Spain's first two matches. Torres should feast on Cape Verde and (to a lesser extent) Saudi Arabia in Spain's first two Group H outings, which could give him a substantial early leg up in the race.

4. Erling Haaland, Norway (—)

Getty Images

Haaland remains in the top five after another Premier League campaign in which he outscored everybody else.

This generation's greatest pure goalscorer is ready for the world stage.

5. Lionel Messi, Argentina (▼2)

Getty Images

Argentina's GOAT will look to go out in spectacular fashion, and he's got enough left in the tank to do so. The team has been built around him, meaning Messi will see as much of the ball as he wants.

He drops a bit here due to an injury scare in his final MLS match before the World Cup break, leaving his level of fitness a mystery. Perhaps Argentina's upcoming friendlies will shed some light on that.

The next 5

 

Watch World Cup archive, highlights and documentaries for FREE on DAZN

DAZN is the home of FIFA+, a vast library of football on-demand content including World Cup archive, iconic documentaries, player profiles, live matches, and both full match replays and highlights.

Watch it all for FREE on DAZN on smart TVs, phones, tablets, streaming devices, games consoles, and web browsers.

FIFA+ includes:

• FIFA World Cup archive - full match replays of all matches from Brazil 1970 to Qatar 2022
• World Cup goals - the best goals from each tournament; every goal from every nation from every tournament
• Original documentaries - including Mo: A Global Icon; Golden Boot: The Documentary; After Diego
• Icons of the game - From Pelé to Cristiano Ronaldo
• Behind-the-scenes content
• Live matches from around the world