Top 5 highest goal scorers in FIFA World Cup
Lionel Messi is the newest inclusion in the list of top 5, pipping Pele who had 12 goals in three World Cups.
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FIFA top scorers
Goals are everything in football, and this year’s FIFA World Cup is no exception. Over 1,300 diverse players have netted 2,548 goals during the men’s FIFA World Cup’s 21 former editions. In the championship’s heritage, only 13 players have managed to strike 10 or more goals.
As Qatar became the first Arabian country to host the World Cup in the winter of 2022, it is time to revisit the list of highest goalscorers in the history of the tournament. It was Lionel Messi who finally etched his name on the biggest trophy, it is French superstar Kylian Mbappe who came closest to featuring in this list. The Paris Saint-Germain forward is on 12 goals in just two World Cups, level with the God of football, Pele. At 24, it is just a matter of time for him to climb up the ladder.
Read More: Is Qatar the first Arab country to host FIFA World Cup?
Beginning with the footballers who are presently ranked first. Below is a list of the top goal scorers in FIFA World Cup tournament history-
5. Lionel Messi – 13 goals in 26 matches
It was a memorable World Cup for Lionel Messi for multiple reasons. Yearning to reflect his stellar club performances for his national team as well, Messi came into the tournament in great form with PSG. And he looked determined to win it all this time around. The 36-year-old managed to score in every game, barring the group-stage fixture versus Poland. But he kept his best performance for the final match.
The final was poised to be a nail-biter from the get-go. Messi’s club teammate, Kylian Mbappe was poised to snatch the glory off his hands as he went on to score a hattrick. But Messi fired back with a brace and it was Argentina who won 7-5 on penalties. The brace meant that Messi finished with 13 goals in five World Cups, pipping Pele off the list.
Messi had only six goals in his four previous World Cups making this his final opportunity to show the critics, if there were any, about his undisputed dominance of the game. La Pulga finished the tournament with seven goals and three assists, winning the Golden Ball as well.
4. Just Fontaine (France) – 13 goals in six matches
Just Fontaine, a French striker, is listed on the famous list despite having participated in just one FIFA World Cup, in 1958 in Sweden. Just Fontaine of France holds the title for the most goals in a single World Cup final, scoring 13 in six games during the 1958 competition. He only ever participated in this World Cup, but he surely made it worthwhile.
In addition to a hat-trick versus Paraguay in his World Cup debut and four goals versus Germany in the third-place playoff, which would be his final World Cup game, Fontaine netted in every game in which France participated.
Just Fontaine’s career was cut short by injuries, and he was compelled to retire at the age of 28. As a result, he never again competed in the World Cup arena. However, his 13 strikes in 1958 continue to hold the distinction for the most goals netted by a single player in one FIFA World Cup.
3. Gerd Muller (Germany) – 14 goals in 13 matches
The 1970 World Cup witnessed Gerd Müller claim the Golden Boot with 10 goals, one of only three times a player has reached double digits in a single edition. Müller successfully scored 14 goals in just two World Cup competitions. In reality, no player in any of the previous 15 men’s World Cup final competitions ever netted as many goals as Müller did in 1970.
Remarkably, Gerd Muller scored 14 FIFA World Cup goals in just 13 games throughout two editions. Ten of these occurred at the 1970 World Cup, notably back-to-back hat-tricks versus Hungary and Peru in the group stages. Muller ultimately won the Golden Boot, but having scored twice against Italy to halt their crown defense, his squad was unable to advance past the semifinals.
Muller did, nevertheless, earn the FIFA World Cup trophy in 1974 in Germany. Despite not taking home the Golden Boot this time, he led his team in scoring with four goals, including the decisive one in a 2-1 victory over the Netherlands in the championship game.
2. Ronaldo (Brazil) – 15 goals in 19 matches
Ronaldo With 15 strikes in 19 games, Luis Nazario Dea, better known by his famous name Ronaldo, is second amongst FIFA World Cup goal scorers. Ronaldo’s total across three tournaments is admirable, even though he is no longer the World Cup’s leading scorer.
Ronaldo was a member of the Brazil team travelling to the USA and Mexico for the 1994 FIFA World Cup. The renowned duo of Romario and Bebeto, who were captaining Brazil in the tournament, barred the 17-year-old from playing.
Known as one of the finest strikers to ever play the game, Ronaldo showed flashes of his brilliance. In 1998, he played in his first World Cup, scoring four goals in seven games. Known as one of the finest strikers to ever play the game, Ronaldo showed flashes of his magnificence.
In his first World Cup, which was held in France in 1998, he scored four goals in seven appearances. But in the 2002 tournament, which was hosted in Japan and South Korea, Ronaldo proved to be unstoppable, scoring eight goals to lead Brazil to victory and win the Golden Boot. Before the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Ronaldo’s physical condition was in question. Before Brazil’s quarterfinal collapse to host nation Germany, he finished with three goals in five games.
1. Miroslav Klose (Germany) – 16 goals in 24 matches
Germany’s Miroslav Klose has tallied 16 goals in 24 games. With 16 goals in 24 games throughout four FIFA World Cups, German striker Miroslav Klose owns the title for most goals ever scored (2002, 2006, 2010, and 2014). The German striker Miroslav Klose has scored more goals than any other player at the World Cup finals.
Klose earned his World Cup breakthrough in 2002 during the competition in Japan and South Korea, and he went off to the greatest possible start by bagging a hat-trick in Germany’s resounding 8-0 victory versus Saudi Arabia in the Sapporo Dome. He is one of 13 players to hit a hat-trick in their World Cup debut.
Despite not being the most well-known player on this chart, Klose stood out for his astounding reliability at every World Cup of football he participated in and his tenure in the sport, which allowed him to compete in four successive editions. At the time of his final World Cup in Brazil in 2014, he was 36 years old. Only three other players—Pele, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Uwe Seeler—have scored in as many as four World Cup competitions.
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Arpan Ghosh
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