Kylian Mbappé scored against Senegal and pulled level with Olivier Giroud as the all-time top scorer for the France national team. The goal also lifted him to 13 World Cup finals goals, tying Just Fontaine and putting him level with Lionel Messi in fourth place on the all-time list.
Mbappé went into the match on 56 goals for France, one behind Giroud’s mark of 57. By finding the net, he erased that gap and matched a record Giroud had held alone since his last goal for France in March 2024.
The timing matters because this is not just a career milestone. It changes the top of the France scoring chart during the 2026 World Cup cycle and adds another layer to a chase that now has Mbappé one goal away from standing alone in first place.
There is still a catch. Mbappé did not break the France record outright, and the single goal he needed to catch Giroud leaves him one more strike short of owning the mark alone. That is why the next France goal he scores will matter more than the last one did.
For the World Cup record book, the numbers are even sharper. Mbappé’s 13 finals goals leave him behind Miroslav Klose, whose total stands at 16, but the Paris forward now sits alongside Fontaine and Messi with no one ahead of them in France’s own history at the tournament. The 2026 World Cup will run from 11 June to 19 July in the United States, Canada and Mexico, with 48 national teams and 16 stadiums, giving Mbappé a long runway to make the record his alone.
