{"id":22406,"date":"2026-07-12T09:37:29","date_gmt":"2026-07-12T13:37:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/us\/?post_type=news&p=22406"},"modified":"2026-07-12T09:37:29","modified_gmt":"2026-07-12T13:37:29","slug":"kane-vs-messi-golden-boot-race","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/us\/news\/world-cup\/kane-vs-messi-golden-boot-race\/","title":{"rendered":"Harry Kane vs Lionel Messi: The Golden Boot, the Captains and a World Cup Semi-Final"},"content":{"rendered":"

Harry Kane against Lionel Messi: two captains, two of the World Cup’s top scorers, and a semi-final that is very probably Messi’s last. They meet in England vs Argentina<\/a> in Atlanta on Wednesday, July 15, with the Golden Boot as the subplot: Messi near the front, Kane chasing.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here is the twist Squawka Signal adds. The betting market makes England narrow favourites to go through; the model does not, leaning Argentina and rating them the stronger side. So Signal sits on Messi’s side of the night twice over: at or near the top of its Golden Boot board, playing for the team it fancies to reach the final<\/a>. Kane and England would be the upset.<\/p>\n

Not that Wednesday settles the Boot. Mbappe is level with Messi on 8 and in the other semi-final, and the losing captain here plays the third-place game rather than going home, so the Boot race runs on. The final is what Wednesday actually decides. Below: where the race stands, how the two compare, and what the model and the markets each make of the game.<\/p>\n\n\n