England captain Harry Kane he also dominated the competition for the FIFA World Cup 2026 Golden Boot with a late strike against Congo DR, moving with Erling Haaland in second place and closing the gap on the joint leaders. Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé.Kane’s two goals inspired England to a 2-1 comeback win in the Round of 32, keeping the Three Lions’ World Cup dreams alive as they opened the tournament’s most successful campaign.The England international now has five goals in the competition, just one behind Messi and Mbappé, who are joint-top with six each after the France captain scored twice in Les Bleus’ 3-0 win in Sweden.
Kane joins the battle for the Golden Boot in style
Facing a shock exit, England went behind on the hour mark after Congo DR took the lead in the seventh minute through Brian Cipenga.Thomas Tuchel’s side struggled to find the lead as goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi denied Jude Bellingham and Marcus Rashford, while Yoane Wissa struck at the other end.Kane finally sparked England’s revival in the 75th minute before completing the comeback with a clinical finish 11 minutes later.The goal not only sealed England’s place in the Round of 16 but also put Kane in the running for the Golden Boot.
FIFA World Cup The appearance of the 2026 Golden Boot
- Kylian Mbappé (France) – 6 goals
- Lionel Messi (Argentina) – 6 goals
- Harry Kane (England) – 5 goals
- Erling Haaland (Norway) – 5 goals
- Ousmane Dembélé (France) – 4 goals
- Vinícius Júnior (Brazil) – 4 goals
- Ismaila Sarr (Senegal) – 4 goals
Several players remain at a distance, setting up an exciting battle as the knock-out competition continues.
- Three goals each: Deniz Undav (Germany), Johan Manzambi (Switzerland), Julian Quinones (Mexico), Cody Gakpo (Netherlands), Brian Brobbery (Netherlands), Folarin Balogun (USA), Matheus Cunha (Brazil), Elijah Just (New Zealand), Yoane Wissa (Cabo Verde), Jonathan David (Canada), Ismail Saibari (Morocco) and Kai Havertz (Germany).
Another historic achievement for the England captain
Kane’s heroics also saw him overtake Brazilian legend Pelé on the all-time World Cup list.His first goal took him level with Pelé on 12 World Cup goals before taking him to 13, cementing his place among the competition’s all-time greats.The England captain had already surpassed Gary Lineker as the men’s World Cup goalscorer earlier in the tournament and now has 20 goals in major international competitions including 84 goals in 118 appearances for England.England had yet to win a men’s World Cup after losing for the first time since defeating Germany in the 1966 World Cup final, underscoring the importance of Kane’s performance.With Messi and Mbappé leading the way on six goals and Kane and Haaland neck-and-neck on five, the competition’s top goalscorer promises to be one of the biggest stories of the knockout phase.England will face their rivals Mexico again in the Round of 16, where Kane will have another chance to continue his goalscoring streak and chase the Golden Boot.
