Who's Leading in the Race for the Golden Shoe?
The battle for the European Golden Shoe is reaching a fever pitch as the current season passes its midway point.
With a different winner in each of the last three campaigns, the prize remains wide open. Manchester City star Erling Haaland was the last Premier League-based player to win the trophy back in the 2022-23 season.
The prodigious Norwegian striker is back in the mix this term, but encounters formidable competition from German Bundesliga marksman Harry Kane and Real Madrid phenomenon Kylian Mbappe. With many matches remaining, other players still have time to enter the contest.
Understanding the Golden Shoe?
The European Golden Shoe was inaugurated in the 1967-68 by the French publication L'Equipe to honor the leading goalscorer in domestic league matches from a European top-flight league.
Since the 1997-98, the award has been administered by European Sports Media, which implemented a points-based points system. Under this method, a player's goals are weighted with a specific multiplier based on the UEFA coefficient of their domestic competition.
Goals scored in Europe's top five leagues—the English Premier League, La Liga, German Bundesliga, Serie A, and French Ligue 1—are worth two points apiece.
For leagues ranked sixth to 22nd in UEFA rankings, such as the Portuguese Primeira Liga, goals are worth one and a half points. Goals in all other European leagues are worth one point.
While the honor has been jointly won on multiple occasions in the past, a rule change from the 2019-20 season states that in the event of a tie, the trophy goes to the player with the fewest minutes played.
If the tie persists, the next deciding factor is the number of league assists, followed by the fewest goals from the penalty spot. Only if these tiebreakers are used would the prize be shared.
Who are the Primary Challengers?
At present, a three-horse battle is underway for the 2025-26 Golden Shoe, with the trio of previous winners split by just a solitary goal.
- Harry Kane (England captain) leads with 19 goals (38 points) from 15 Bundesliga matches.
- Erling Haaland also has 19 goals (38 points) from 17 Premier League appearances.
- Kylian Mbappe sits just behind on 18 goals (36 points) in 18 La Liga games.
In fourth is Darko Lemajic of Latvia's side RFS, who has netted 28 goals (28 points) across the club's 36 league games in 2025.
Dutch side Feyenoord forward Ayase Ueda is joint-fifth with 18 goals (27 points) from 17 Eredivisie fixtures this term.
The rest of the top 10 is made up of players from leagues that function on a calendar year schedule.
Reviewing Previous Recipients
Throughout its 59-year history, the Golden Shoe has been won by some of football's most iconic legends.
Portuguese icon Eusébio claimed the first-ever trophy in 1968, scoring forty-two goals for Benfica. He then secured the award for a second time in the 1972-73.
Argentine maestro Lionel Messi has secured the most Golden Shoes, claiming the honor on six separate times during his long tenure at FC Barcelona.
Messi set the record for most goals in a campaign with 50 in 2011-12 (100 points). He also became the only player to ever to win it in three consecutive seasons from 2016-17 to 2018-19.
Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo first won award in the 2007-08 with Manchester United before proceeding to win it three more times with Real Madrid.
The first player to win the award while at an English club was Liverpool's Ian Rush in 1983-84, when he scored thirty-two goals for Liverpool.
The prize has seen a new winner in every one of the past three seasons.
Erling Haaland claimed the award for the first time in 2022-23, scoring a Premier League record thirty-six goals (72 points). Harry Kane secured his first Golden Shoe with the identical goal tally for Bayern Munich the next season.
Kylian Mbappe is the current winner of the award after scoring 31 goals (62 points) for Real Madrid in 2024-25.
Now, the same trio are battling at the top of the standings once more this campaign, with Kane currently out in front the way.