The 2026 FIFA World Cup is shaping up to be the biggest edition in the tournament’s history. And the players expected to feature are already putting up international numbers that demand a closer look.
A recent breakdown circulating on social media ranked active 2026 World Cup squad members by their international goal or assist contributions per game. The metric, often shortened to G/A per game, strips away the noise of total career numbers and isolates who is actually the most productive when they pull on a national team jersey.
The names at the top
Lionel Messi, as usual, sits at the center of the conversation. The Argentine legend has racked up 21 combined goals and assists across 26 World Cup matches throughout his career. That’s a rate of roughly 0.81 G/A per World Cup game, a staggering clip for a tournament where defensive discipline typically suppresses scoring.
Kylian Mbappe is right there with him. The French forward has already scored 12 World Cup goals despite being just 26 years old heading into the next edition.
