Who Are Leading in the 2022 World Cup Golden Boot Race?

Besides winning the 2022 FIFA World Cup, there is no greater achievement a player can get in Qatar than the Golden Boot award.

Spain's Alvaro Morata, France's Kylian Mbappe and England's Marcus Rashford, are among the joint top goal scorers (3) in the Golden Boot award race at the World Cup.

The Golden Boot award is bestowed on the player that scores the most goals in the World Cup. If players are tied and scored the same amount of goals and have the same number of assists, the award goes to the player who played the least number of minutes.

Let's take a look at who is at the top of the 2022 Golden Boot award leaderboards

Alvaro Morata, Forward (Spain)
3 goals, 1 assist, 114 minutes

Spain's striker, Alvaro Morata, became the second player at the 2022 FIFA World Cup to score a goal in all three of his team’s group stage games. Morata, aside from scoring a goal in the overwhelming 7-0 victory over Costa Rica, he also provided an assist against Los Ticos proving to be quite the ultimate substitute at the World Cup.

Kylian Mbappé, Forward (France)
3 goals, 1 assist, 207 minutes

The youngest French player to score at a World Cup, Kylian Mbappé, 23, has already found the back of the net seven times. Mbappé scored twice in the match against Denmark on Saturday, before coming off the bench in Wednesday's game against Tunisia.

Mbappé joins Pelé as the second player to net seven goals in a World Cup before his 24th birthday, having played in Russia 2018 where Les Bleus were crowned champions.

Marcus Rashford, Foward, (England)
3 goals, 0 assists, 117 minutes

Marcus Rashford started the 2022 World Cup as a sub. After scoring once in the 71st minute of the World Cup opener against Iran, the English winger made a splash scoring twice in the second half of the group stage finale against Wales Tuesday at Ahmed bin Ali Stadium. One of those goals was a daggering free kick that broke Wales’ will and secured England’s advancement to the round of 16 as Group B winners.

Cody Gakpo, Winger (Netherlands)
3 goals, 0 assists, 251 minutes

The Netherlands' winger is experiencing a breakout World Cup in Qatar. Cody Gakpo has scored using both feet, plus a header and is tied as the top scorer at the tournament so far with three goals. Gakpo joins Spain's Alvaro Morata as the only other player to score a goal in all three of his team’s group stage games.

The Oranje are considered the best national team to have never won a World Cup, losing in the final three times. Gakpo, on pace to contend for the Golden Boot award looks to change that trend for the Netherlands.

Enner Valencia, Forward (Ecuador)
3 goals, 1 assist, 257 minutes

Ecuador's 33-year-old captain, is only the fourth player to score six consecutive goals for a nation at the World Cup. Enner Valencia wasted no time in Qatar, where he netted the first goal of the tournament in the 16th minute off a penalty kick against the host country.

Valencia is the joint leading scorer of the tournament with three goals. The Ecuadorian striker scored his third goal, four minutes into the second half against the Netherlands, tapping in from close range, before being hauled off in a stretcher. Valencia will have a tough time walking away as the Golden Boot champion, as Ecuador will not advance in the tournament, after a 2-1 loss to Senegal in the group stage finale.