​Rewritten Poll: Best Player at the 2026 World Cup from Messi and Haaland to Mbappe and Kane originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here. The biggest World Cup in history has lived up to the hype, delivering more teams, more games, and a North American host for the first time in three decades. The football gods have overdelivered so far, with a golden boot race that looks like no other, and a record that has already been broken twice. We’ve witnessed unlikely late comebacks, stoppage-time heroics, Cinderella stories, and, of course, plenty of VAR controversy. Above all, the stars have shined.
On June 16, Lionel Messi scored a hat trick, Erling Haaland found the net twice, and Kylian Mbappe—last year’s Golden Boot recipient—also struck twice. The fireworks show has yet to end. The Golden Boot race continues to captivate, and the all-time scoring record for the World Cup is in play as well. England’s Harry Kane became their all-time leading scorer in World Cup play, while his teammate Jude Bellingham has at times looked like football’s most complete player. Mbappe’s French teammates, particularly Michael Olise and Ousmane Dembélé, demonstrated that Les Bleus is about more than a single star. Though Lamine Yamal entered the tournament with the promise of a torch to carry, fellow Spaniards Rodri and Mikel Oyarzabal have delivered standout performances.
And that’s before noting Cape Verde’s 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha, who became an overnight global sensation, his following swelling massively on Instagram in a burst of attention. The question then becomes: who has been the World Cup’s best player? We’re squarely in the knockout phase, where the pressure and stakes rise with every match. Will Messi clinch a second consecutive World Cup title? Could Mbappe or Kane become the first player ever to win two Golden Boots? We can only hope for a finish as thrilling as Qatar’s dramatic finale four years ago, perhaps the greatest World Cup final in history.
Golden Boot tiebreakers in the event of a tie. The 21 most infamous moments in World Cup history. The USMNT’s loss to Belgium will challenge beliefs about the program’s future. And why Erling Haaland’s teenage rap track is taking over the internet. This is a story of elite goals, extraordinary performances, and players whose legacies could define a generation. minimum 500 words.