The intense scoring competition between Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland have raised the fight for the Golden Boot to a level that allows us to dream of reaching the historic record of Frenchman Just Fontaine, who scored 13 goals in a single edition of the World Cup.
The five goals from Messi and the four from Mbappé and Haaland in just two games bring them closer to that mark, also favored by the new format of the tournamentwhich guarantees up to eight matches for those who reach the semifinals, unlike the six that Fontaine played in 1958.
Born in 1933 in Marrakech, when Morocco was a French protectorate, Just Fontaine was a relentless scorer. He debuted at just 17 years old at USM Casablanca and developed his career in France with Nice and Stade Reims, the team with which he played—and lost—the European Cup final against Real Madrid.
If Alfredo Di Stéfano snatched continental glory from him in 1959, a year earlier it was young Pelé’s Brazil that prevented him from reaching the World Cup final.
Fontaine arrived at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden after René Bliard’s injury. He had barely played four games with the French team and, curiously, had to borrow some boots to compete. He also had meniscus surgery months before, but that summer everything went perfectly. “In 1958 he walked on water, like Jesus,” he recalled years later in an interview with FIFA.
His performance was enormous: he debuted with a hat trick against Paraguay, he scored two goals against Yugoslavia, one against Scotland, another double against Northern Ireland in the quarterfinals and a goal in the semifinals. against Brazil. He closed his participation with four goals in the match for third place against Germany, thus reaching 13 goals. which still today represent the absolute record in a single World Cup.
Fontaine attributed much of his success to his teammate Raymond Kopa, with whom he maintained a near-perfect connection on the field. However, he never competed in another World Cup. A fracture of the tibia and fibula forced him to retire prematurely at the age of 28.
A record that begins to falter
When asked years later about the possibility of someone surpassing his mark, Fontaine responded wryly:
“Two Egyptologists find an intact mummy. When they wake it up, the first thing they ask is: ‘Does Just Fontaine still have the goals record?'” For decades, that record seemed untouchable. Since 1970, when Gerd Müller scored 10 goals, no one had come close. Only figures such as the Polish Grzegorz Lato (7), Ronaldo Nazário (8) and Mbappé (8) managed to exceed half a dozen.
However, this edition of World Cup has revived the possibility of breaking that mark. Messi has equaled Fontaine’s start with five goals in two games, while Mbappé and Haaland They maintain an impressive scoring pace, backed by their recent figures at club level.
With more games to play and a generation of scorers in top form, the record that seemed eternal is beginning to be in danger. Fontaine’s “mummy,” for now, might start to get restless.