Kylian Mbappé scored twice against Sweden on Tuesday, and the second finish pushed him into sole possession of the World Cup knockout-stage scoring record. He also moved level with Lionel Messi on 18 total World Cup goals after a night that changed two all-time lists in the same match.
Kylian Mbappé and Sweden
The first goal came in the 45th minute, when he beat Jacob Widell Zetterström with a curving shot to the far post for a 1–0 France lead. That strike gave him nine World Cup knockout-stage goals, moving him past Leônidas and Ronaldo, who had eight apiece.
Mbappé had already been denied once. In the 20th minute, he found the net before being ruled offside, then hit the post 12 minutes later. The second goal arrived in the 75th minute and put France up by three.
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World Cup knockout-stage record
Those two goals carried a different weight because of where they landed in the record book. Mbappé now has nine knockout-stage goals in nine matches across three tournaments, and he passed Miroslav Klose's 16 World Cup goals in the process before reaching 17 and then 18 overall against Sweden.
That also moved him ahead of Erling Haaland in the Golden Boot race and tied Lionel Messi for first. He had six goals that summer in the tournament, with one clean finish and one late burst doing the damage on Tuesday and France and Sweden both feeling the result immediately.
Kylian Mbappe Leads France Vs Sweden 1/16 Finish Swing fits the sequence of the night: an offside call, a missed chance off the post, then two goals that rewrote the record line. The match turned on Mbappé's finishing, and the final numbers now leave him alone at the top of one World Cup chart and tied at the top of another.
Lionel Messi for first
The practical takeaway for the race inside the tournament is simple. Mbappé has climbed to 18 total World Cup goals, tied with Messi, and his next breakthrough would give him sole possession of that mark as well. For France, the gain came in one match, with one forward changing both the knockout-stage standard and the broader scoring race before the game was over.
