Can Lionel Messi’s 91-goal record ever be broken?
Lionel Messi’s record of scoring 91 goals in a calendar year is surely one of those records that will never be beaten. Right?
The Argentinian was on another planet, at the absolute peak of his powers, back in 2012. Levels we quite possibly won’t ever see ever again.
Kylian Mbappe, Harry Kane and Erling Haaland might just back themselves to go on and do something similar.
Arguably the three best goalscorers in world football right now, they all possess the ability to rack up insane goalscoring numbers.
We’ve taken a look at the only three currently active footballers that could conceivably be capable of breaking Messi’s most insane record, and assessed their chances of doing so.
Harry Kane
The England captain’s outrageous start to the 2025-26 campaign prompted some on social media to ponder whether Messi’s legendary 91-goal record could be under threat.
Transfermarkt recently worked out that Kane has reached 20 goal contributions in record time – just 742 minutes in all competitions – breaking the record Messi set with his start to the 2011-12 campaign.
He’s notched 17 goals and three assists from just nine appearances in all competitions for Bayern Munich so far in 2025-26. That works out as a goal every 43 minutes and a goal or an assist every 37 minutes.
Needless to say, if Kane can maintain that output over a full season or a full calendar year, he’d break all manner of Messi’s greatest records.
But actually doing so is another matter entirely.
As good as the Bayern striker’s start to the season has been, Messi’s calendar-year record is safe for now. Kane won’t be breaking it in 2025.
Kane has scored in five of his six appearances for England in 2025. He’s also scored 38 goals from 40 appearances for Bayern in all competitions this calendar year. That’s a total of 43 goals in 2025.
To put it another way, Kane would need to score another 48 goals in all competitions in the last three months of the year to break the record.
That puts Messi’s numbers into perspective, doesn’t it?
There’s always next year. If he can keep up this white-hot, career-best form throughout 2026 (a World Cup year, no less), then he has a shot. Ifs don’t come much bigger than that, though.
Kylian Mbappe
Kane isn’t actually the frontrunner for goals scored in 2026.
Mbappe’s debut season at Real Madrid was disappointingly lacking in silverware, but the Frenchman did claim his first-ever European Golden Shoe after turning on the afterburners in the second half of the campaign.
And he’s picked up where he left off with a similarly prolific start to the 2025-26 campaign.
The 26-year-old has notched 43 goals in 44 appearances for Real Madrid in 2025. He’s also scored four goals in six appearances for France this year.
Very impressive stuff, but we can safely assume he won’t be scoring 45 goals(!) in October, November and December – the number required to break Messi’s calendar year record before the end of the year.
Mbappe is averaging a goal every 64 minutes for club and country so far this season.
That’s the kind of level he’ll be required to maintain for 12 whole months if he’s to get anywhere near Messi’s 2012 level – the Argentinian averaged a goal every 66 minutes that year.
Erling Haaland
Struggling with form and fitness, Haaland’s goal return was uncharacteristically ordinary in the latter half of 2025-26.
Kane and Mbappe won’t be anywhere near Messi’s numbers this year, and nor will Manchester City’s Norse God.
He’s scored just 26 goals in 30 appearances for City in 2025 and is behind the likes of Viktor Gyokeres, Ivan Toney and even Messi himself in the 2025 calendar year goalscoring charts.
But it’s safe to say that Haaland is looking back to his terrifying, devastatingly powerful best since the summer break.
Seventeen goals in just 10 appearances for club and country this season. A goal every 47 minutes.
His five-goal haul against Moldova shows he’ll show no mercy when given an opportunity to rack up the numbers.
With Norway looking set to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, he could be gearing up for a special year.
