Kylian Mbappé has 14 World Cup goals. He’s passed Pelé. He’s passed Messi. And yet, when asked to rank the best in the game, the French forward still puts Lionel Messi above himself.

During the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Mbappé made his admiration for the Argentine clear, publicly stating he expects Messi to keep finding the net on the biggest stage in football. He also placed both Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in a category above himself, Erling Haaland, and Harry Kane.

Mbappé’s quiet ascent to the top

His 14 career World Cup goals now surpass Messi’s 13 and Pelé’s 12, placing him alone at the top of the all-time list as of June 2026.

The crypto angle: fan tokens and NFT surges

Kraken’s sponsorship of FIFA has placed cryptocurrency branding front and center during the tournament. Trading activity around fan tokens and prediction markets has surged, closely tied to the on-pitch performances of stars like Messi, Mbappé, and Haaland.

Messi’s existing sponsorship with Socios.com, valued at over $20 million, has historically correlated with spikes in fan token activity during major tournaments.

Mbappé became an ambassador for Sorare, the fantasy football and NFT platform, back in July 2022. That single announcement triggered a 795% spike in NFT sales on the platform the same day.

What crypto investors should watch

Despite the surge in trading activity and the obvious commercial synergy between football and blockchain, no new officially endorsed player-specific tokens tied to 2026 World Cup performances have been announced. The market is flooded with unofficial meme tokens pegged to player names and tournament moments, but none carry the endorsement or involvement of the athletes themselves.

The existing partnerships—Messi with Socios.com and Mbappé with Sorare—remain the most credible crypto plays connected to individual player performance. Historically, these platforms see engagement and trading volume spike during major tournaments, then taper off afterward.