Updated: 10 Jun 2026 13:55 BST |
2 min read
Kylian Mbappe travels to the World Cup with France, aiming to surpass Olivier Giroud’s scoring record and become Les Bleus’ leading marksman of all time.
At the age of just 27, Mbappe trails Giroud by just a single goal ahead of the 2026 competition having already written an impressive legacy for the national team by winning the 2018 World Cup and then bagging a hat-trick in the final four years later as Didier Deschamps’ side fell just short in the defence of their title.
The Real Madrid striker has 56 international goals to his credit and, along with Giroud (57) and Thierry Henry (51) is one of three players to have hit the half-century mark with his country.
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Who is France’s record goal scorer?
Olivier Giroud is the highest scorer in the history of the France national team with 53 goals.
He surpassed Thierry Henry by breaking the deadlock just before half-time of France’s last-16 2022 World Cup game against Poland. He then went further clear at the top of the charts by grabbing the winner in a 2-1 quarter-final victory over England.
A late bloomer in professional football Giroud’s persistence and determination have been among his key traits as he wrote himself into the history of the French game.
France’s leading scorers are largely drawn from the last couple of decades, although some greats from the past are thrown in for good measure.
Henry, who ranks third in France’s goal list, is also Arsenal’s leading scorer. He represented France between 1997 and 2010, collecting 123 caps and featuring in the squads that won both World Cup 1998 and Euro 2000.
Top 10 France goal scorers of all time
| Player | Caps | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Olivier Giroud | 137 | 57 |
| Kylian Mbappe | 98 | 56 |
| Thierry Henry | 142 | 51 |
| Antoine Griezmann | 137 | 44 |
| Michel Platini | 72 | 41 |
| Karim Benzema | 97 | 37 |
| David Trezeguet | 71 | 34 |
| Zinedine Zidane | 108 | 31 |
| Just Fontaine | 21 | 30 |
| Jean-Pierre Papin | 54 | 30 |
| Youri Djorkaeff | 82 | 28 |
Karim Benzema, meanwhile, is on 37 goals but has retired from international football. His tally is lower than it might have been due to a spell in the international wilderness.
Perhaps the most remarkable scoring statistics, though, belong to Just Fontaine, who scored 30 goals in just 21 internationals, including five hat-tricks. Fontaine won his caps from 1953-1960, scoring a record 13 goals in the 1958 World Cup, which is a mark that still stands.
Mbappe is the only member of France’s all-time leading scorers at the 2026 World Cup, with Giroud not picked and Griezmann and Benzema having quit the international scene.
