Lionel Messi has moved into the lead for the 2026 World Cup Golden Boot, edging ahead of France's Kylian Mbappé on the strength of a tiebreaker after Wednesday's dramatic semifinal, setting up a tight finish to one of the tournament's most closely watched individual races heading into the final weekend.

Both Messi and Mbappé enter the tournament's closing matches with eight goals apiece, the most of any player at this year's World Cup. With the two tied on goals, the Golden Boot race currently comes down to assists, the first tiebreaker used by FIFA when players finish level on goals. Messi holds four assists so far in the tournament, one more than Mbappé's three, giving the Argentine captain the edge for now. Should the two remain tied on both goals and assists by the tournament's end, the final tiebreaker would be total minutes played, with the player who has spent less time on the field awarded the honor.

Messi's edge in assists came directly from Wednesday's semifinal against England, in which he set up both of Argentina's late goals in a dramatic 2-1 comeback victory. He first found Enzo Fernández for an equalizer in the 85th minute, then delivered a precise cross for Lautaro Martínez to head home the winner in the second minute of stoppage time. Those two assists pushed Messi's tournament total to four, moving him ahead of Mbappé in the standings for the first time since the French forward's own strong run through the tournament's knockout rounds.

Messi's path to the........

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