​Real Madrid are on the cusp of making World Cup history. Although they did not head into the tournament with an unusually large squad, their representatives have combined to score 17 goals, leaving Los Blancos just two strikes away from setting the record for the most goals ever by a single club in a World Cup, according to AS. The current record for most goals by a club in a World Cup is 18, a mark shared by Honved (1954), Bayern Munich (2014), and Paris Saint-Germain (2018).
Madrid initially fielded nine players from last season’s squad at the World Cup across the United States, Mexico, and Canada: Thibaut Courtois, Antonio Rudiger, Aurelien Tchouameni, Federico Valverde, Arda Guler, Jude Bellingham, Brahim Diaz, Vinicius Junior, and Kylian Mbappe. They were subsequently joined by five more after the transfer window opened: Endrick, returning from loan, and new signings Denzel Dumfries, Ibrahima Konate, Marc Cucurella, and Bernardo Silva. This brought Real Madrid’s official World Cup representation to 14 players.
A notable feature of Madrid’s campaign is that none of the new additions have yet found the net. All 17 goals scored by Real Madrid at the tournament have come from just four players, underscoring that quality can triumph over quantity in a World Cup setting. The standout performer has been Kylian Mbappe, who is tied with Lionel Messi as the tournament’s top scorer with eight goals. Mbappe could have even more to his name had he not missed a penalty against Morocco in the quarterfinals. In addition to his eight goals, he has contributed three assists, highlighting how pivotal his influence has been in Madrid’s pursuit of history. Eight goals in six World Cup matches illustrate just how decisive he has been for his team.
Close behind Mbappe is Jude Bellingham, who has four goals. The England midfielder has experienced a mix of scoring and non-scoring outings, finding the back of the net against Croatia, Panama, and Mexico (twice). Bellingham’s four goals place him among the leading scorers for Real Madrid’s contingent in the tournament. Vinicius Junior has also bagged four goals, all of them in the group stage against Morocco, Haiti, and Scotland (twice). The fourth and final Madrid scorer in this World Cup campaign is Arda Guler, whose single goal came in Turkey’s final match against the United States.
The quarterfinals opened with France facing Morocco in Boston. After the whistle, six Real Madrid players remained in the competition, including the club’s new signings: Courtois, Konate, Cucurella, Tchouameni, Bellingham, and Mbappe. The responsibility to push Real Madrid over the line and break the World Cup scoring record now rests largely on these six players. If they find the net two more times, Real Madrid would become the highest-scoring club in World Cup history.
An intriguing historical aside accompanies this race for the record, adding another layer to the narrative as the chase progresses. With the clock ticking, Madrid’s top quartet of Mbappe, Bellingham, Vinicius Jr., and Guler (the four Madrid forwards who have scored) — along with the contributions from Courtois, Konate, Cucurella, Tchouameni, and Mbappe — are positioned to etch their team’s name into World Cup lore. If the six players on duty manage two more goals between them, Real Madrid will sit at the summit of World Cup scoring history, surpassing the previous benchmark held by those illustrious clubs.