Kylian Mbappé, captain of the France national team, continued his pursuit of Argentina's Lionel Messi on the list of players with the most goal contributions in World Cup history, after surpassing the record of Brazilian legend Pelé during his country's 4-1 victory over Norway at the close of Group 9 fixtures at the 2026 World Cup.
The French national team clinched the top spot in Group 9 following their commanding win over Norway, setting up a Round of 32 fixture against one of the best third-placed teams, while Norway will face Côte d'Ivoire in the same round.
Ousmane Dembélé shone throughout the match, scoring a hat-trick, while Doué added the fourth goal. Mbappé contented himself with providing 2 assists for Dembélé without scoring himself, yet he still achieved a new historic milestone.
FIFA's official website noted that Mbappé raised his tally to 20 goal contributions in his World Cup appearances — comprising 16 goals and 4 assists — surpassing Pelé, who ended his World Cup career with 19 goal contributions, made up of 12 goals and 7 assists.
Mbappé is now closing in on the record held by Argentina's Lionel Messi, who leads all current players in World Cup goal contributions with 27 — comprising 18 goals and 9 assists.
The new milestone came despite Mbappé failing to score against Norway, as his 2 assists were sufficient to carry him past one of the most storied records in the tournament's history and to further advance his standing on the list of the most attacking-influential players in World Cup history.