Lego has posted record first-half sales as its World Cup and Formula 1 ranges helped extend a red-hot run for the toymaking giant.

Lego CEO Niels Christiansen told CNBC the company is seeing strong sales at both ends of the pricing spectrum.

Lego, the world's biggest toy maker by revenue, posted "stronger than expected" earnings for the first half of the year, its chief executive told AFP, with net profit rising 32…