🔗 Share this article Who is Leading in the Pursuit for the Golden Boot Award? The contest for the prestigious Golden Shoe is intensifying as the 2025-26 season nears its mid-season juncture. With a new winner in each of the past three campaigns, the honor remains up for grabs. Manchester City star Erling Haaland was the last Premier League-based forward to win the trophy back in the 2022-23 season. The prolific Norwegian goal-scorer is once again in the mix this campaign, but encounters formidable rivalry from German Bundesliga forward Harry Kane and Real Madrid phenomenon Kylian Mbappe. With many fixtures remaining, other talents still have an opportunity to throw their hat into the contest. Harry Kane, Erling Haaland, and Kylian Mbappe have each secured one European Golden Shoe to date. What is the European Golden Shoe Award? The European Golden Shoe was introduced in the 1967-68 season by the French publication L'Equipe to celebrate the top goalscorer in domestic league matches from a European top-flight league. Since the 1997-98 season, the award has been administered by European Sports Media, which implemented a points-based scoring system. Under this format, a player's tallies are multiplied by a designated coefficient based on the UEFA coefficient of their league. Goals scored in Europe's five major leagues—the English Premier League, Spanish La Liga, German Bundesliga, Italian Serie A, and French Ligue 1—are valued at two points apiece. For leagues ranked sixth to 22nd in UEFA's list, such as the Portuguese Primeira Liga, goals are worth one and a half points. Goals in lower-ranked European leagues carry one point. While the award has been jointly won on multiple occasions in the past, a regulation update from the 2019-20 season dictates that in the event of a points tie, the award goes to the player with the least minutes played. If the tie persists, the next tiebreaker is the total of league assists, followed by the fewest goals from the penalty spot. Only if these tiebreakers are used would the prize be shared. Who are the Primary Contenders? Currently, a three-horse race is underway for the current season's Golden Shoe, with the trio of most recent winners split by just a single goal. Harry Kane (England captain) leads with 19 goals (38 points) from 15 Bundesliga games. Erling Haaland also has 19 goals (38 points) from 17 Premier League outings. Kylian Mbappe sits one back on 18 goals (36 points) in 18 La Liga games. In fourth is Darko Lemajic of Latvia's side RFS, who has netted 28 goals (28 points) across their 36 league games in 2025. Feyenoord forward Ayase Ueda is joint-fifth with 18 goals (27 points) from 17 Eredivisie matches this term. The remainder of the top 10 is comprised of players from leagues that operate on a January-to-December schedule. A Look at Past Recipients Lionel Messi holds the record for the highest number of Golden Shoe awards in history with six. Throughout its nearly six-decade existence, the Golden Shoe has been won by some of football's biggest stars. Portuguese icon Eusebio claimed the inaugural trophy in 1968, scoring forty-two goals for SL Benfica. He then won the award for a second time in the 1972-73. Argentine legend Lionel Messi has secured the most Golden Shoes, claiming the honor on six occasions during his long spell at Barcelona. Messi established the record for most goals in a campaign with fifty in 2011-12 (100 points). He also became the first and only player to ever to win it in three consecutive seasons from 2016-17 to 2018-19. Portuguese megastar Cristiano Ronaldo first won award in the 2007-08 season with Man Utd before proceeding to win it three more times with Real Madrid. The inaugural player to win the award while at an club in England was Liverpool's Ian Rush in 1983-84, when he netted 32 goals for Liverpool FC. The award has seen a new winner in each of the past three seasons. Erling Haaland won the award for the first time in 2022-23, scoring a Premier League record 36 goals (72 points). Harry Kane earned his maiden Golden Shoe with the identical goal tally for Bayern Munich the next season. Kylian Mbappe is the reigning holder of the award after scoring 31 goals (62 points) for Real Madrid in 2024-25. Now, the very trio are vying at the top of the standings again this campaign, with Kane presently out in front the pack.