FIFA Golden Boot Award

Each World Cup Final is distinguished by many magical moments, including the award ceremony at the end of the game. Before the winners are handed the World Cup trophy, the FIFA president presents different individual awards, including the Golden Boot, which goes to the highest goalscorer(s) of the tournament.

FIFA has given players individual awards such as the Golden Ball or All Star team selections for almost every edition of the tournament. However, the Golden Boot, which at the time was “Golden Shoe,” was awarded for the first time only in the 1982 World Cup in Spain.

The first winner of the “Golden Shoe” was Italy’s Paolo Rossi in 1982 with six goals. Six turned out to be the magic number, as Gary Lineker, Salvatore Schillaci, the duo Oleg Salenko and Hristo Stoickhov, and Davor Šuker all won it by scoring six goals, respectively in 1986, 1990, 1994, and 1998. Ronaldo won it in 2002 with eight goals, which is tied for the third highest goal tally in a single World Cup tournament. Germany’s Miroslav Klose won the last edition of the Golden Shoe in 2006 with five goals.

In 2010, FIFA decided to switch the name to “Golden Boot,” starting from the 2010 South Africa World Cup. The winner was once again from Germany, as Thomas Müller brought the hardware home with five goals. Müller scored another five goals in 2014, but this time it was not enough, as Colombia’s James Rodriguez won the Golden Boot with six goals. England’s Harry Kane is the latest winner of the Golden Boot with six goals, including a hat-trick, in the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Similarly to the Golden Ball, FIFA gives an award to the second and third-highest goalscorers too. These awards were known as the Silver and Bronze Shoe until 2010 when FIFA switched to the Silver and Bronze Boot. In the case of two players having the same goal tally, FIFA gives the award to the one that had more assists. The latest winner of the Silver Boot is France’s Antoine Griezmann, while Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku received the Bronze Boot.

Who has won the FIFA Golden Boot?

• 2010 South Africa: Thomas Müller (5 Goals)
• 2014 Brazil: James Rodríguez (6 Goals)
• 2018 Russia: Harry Kane (6 Goals)

Who has won the FIFA Silver Boot?

• 2010 South Africa: David Villa (5 Goals)
• 2014 Brazil: Thomas Müller (5 Goals)
• 2018 Russia: Antoine Griezmann (4 Goals)

Who has won the FIFA Bronze Boot?

• 2010 South Africa: Wesley Sneijder (5 Goals)
• 2014 Brazil: Neymar (4 Goals)
• 2018 Russia: Romelu Lukaku (4 Goals)

Who has won the FIFA Golden Shoe?

• 1982 Spain: Paolo Rossi (6 Goals)
• 1986 Mexico: Gary Lineker (6 Goals)
• 1990 Italy: Salvatore Schillaci (6 Goals)
• 1994 United States: Oleg Salenko (6 Goals), Hristo Stoichkov (6 Goals)
• 1998 France: Davor Šuker (6 Goals)
• 2002 South Korea/Japan: Ronaldo (8 Goals)
• 2006 Germany: Miroslav Klose (5 Goals)

Who has won the FIFA Silver Shoe?

• 1982 Spain: Karl-Heinz Rummenigge (5 Goals)
• 1986 Mexico: Emilio Butragueño, Careca, Diego Maradona (5 Goals)
• 1990 Italy: Tomáš Skuhravý (5 Goals)
• 1994 United States: None (Goals)
• 1998 France: Gabriel Batistuta, Christian Vieri (5 Goals)
• 2002 South Korea/Japan: Miroslav Klose, Rivaldo (5 Goals)
• 2006 Germany: Hernán Crespo (3 Goals)

Who has won the FIFA Bronze Shoe?

• 1982 Spain: Zico (4 Goals)
• 1986 Mexico: N/A
• 1990 Italy: Roger Milla, Gary Lineker (4 Goals)
• 1994 United States: Kennet Andersson, Romário (5 Goals)
• 1998 France: N/A
• 2002 South Korea/Japan: N/A
• 2006 Germany: Ronaldo (3 Goals)

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