Kylian Mbappé saw his 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign come to an end after France suffered a 2-0 defeat to Spain in the semifinals. The loss not only ended Les Bleus’ title hopes but also highlighted a remarkable statistic that has followed the Real Madrid forward throughout his World Cup career.
With 20 goals in just three World Cups, Mbappé is now the second-highest scorer in tournament history, trailing only Lionel Messi, who has 21 goals and is still set to play the other semifinal against England.
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Mbappé’s lingering semifinal curse
Despite his extraordinary numbers, there is one stage of the tournament where the French star has yet to make his mark: the semifinals.
None of Mbappé’s 20 World Cup goals have come in the match before the final. That drought continued in 2026, where he started against Spain but once again failed to find the back of the net.
It is a familiar story. At Russia 2018, France edged Belgium 1-0 thanks to Samuel Umtiti’s winner, while Mbappé was held scoreless. Four years later, at Qatar 2022, Les Bleus defeated Morocco 2-0 through goals from Théo Hernández and Randal Kolo Muani, but their biggest star was again kept off the scoresheet.
Now, the defeat to Spain has confirmed for the third consecutive World Cup that Mbappé has yet to score in a World Cup semifinal.
France’s Kylian Mbappe (10) celebrates after winning the World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between France and Morocco
A scoring machine in every other round
Mbappé’s first World Cup goal came during the group stage of Russia 2018, when he scored the winner against Peru.
Since then, he has found the net in virtually every stage of the competition. At Qatar 2022, he scored against Australia, netted a brace versus Denmark, another brace against Poland in the Round of 16, and famously produced a hat trick in the final against Argentina.
At 2026, he maintained his outstanding scoring form with a brace against Senegal, another goal versus Iraq, two more against Sweden in the Round of 32, the winner against Paraguay in the Round of 16, and his first-ever World Cup quarterfinal goal against Morocco.
The king of World Cup finals… who won’t be there this time
If the semifinals have become Mbappé’s greatest obstacle, World Cup finals have traditionally been his biggest stage. However, for the first time in his career, he will not play in a World Cup final.
The French forward remains the all-time leading scorer in World Cup finals, with four goals: one against Croatia in Russia 2018 and three against Argentina in Qatar 2022.
That total puts him ahead of legends such as Geoff Hurst, Pelé, Vavá, and Zinedine Zidane, who each scored three goals in World Cup finals.
Ironically, the player who has thrived on football’s biggest stage continues to be haunted by the semifinal round. France’s elimination at the hands of Spain extended one of the most surprising statistical anomalies in the career of one of the greatest World Cup goalscorers ever.
