Record goals, late drama, and underdog heroics – is the 2026 World Cup the best ever?

The 2026 World Cup has been a festival of football unlike any other. With the quarterfinals set to begin Thursday and eight matches remaining, the tournament co-hosted by Canada, Mexico, and the United States has already delivered a stream of unforgettable moments. Statistically, it stacks up against the very best. Across 96 of 104 matches, 280 goals have been scored – an average of 2.92 per game, the highest since the 1970 tournament in Mexico (2.97). That’s a noticeable jump from recent editions: 2.69 in Qatar 2022, 2.64 in Russia 2018, and 2.67 in Brazil 2014. The biggest blowout came when Germany crushed Curacao 7-1, but eight other matches produced six goals, and 13 more saw five. Attacking football has been rewarded. Open-play goals account for 74.6% of the total – among the highest rates in World Cup history – while penalties have contributed just 5%, the lowest percentage ever recorded. Late-game dramatics have been relentless. Eight of 24 knockout ties have produced a winning goal after the 85th minute, and Enzo Fernández’s winner for Argentina against Egypt marked the 10th such goal in the 90th minute or later – already a single-tournament record. Argentina also needed extra time to dispatch underdogs Cape Verde, and four knockout games went to penalty shootouts. July alone served up at least three modern classics: Belgium, Argentina, and England all clinched 3-2 victories over Senegal, Egypt, and Mexico respectively. Both Belgium and Argentina overturned two-goal deficits to win, the first time since 1970 that more than one such comeback has occurred in the same World Cup. England’s win came despite playing 40 minutes with 10 men after Jarell Quansah’s red card, holding on in a fierce atmosphere at the legendary Azteca Stadium. Not everything has been high-scoring drama. There have been eight goalless draws – a World Cup record – but that stat may reflect competitive balance rather than boredom. Fears about expensive tickets and ghost-town stadiums proved unfounded. FIFA reports 99.7% of available seats have been filled, with over 6.2 million attending through the first two knockout rounds. Average attendance sits above 65,000, trailing only the 1994 US-hosted tournament (nearly 69,000). The stars have delivered as well. The Golden Boot race is historic: Lionel Messi (Argentina) leads with eight goals, followed by Kylian Mbappé (France) and Erling Haaland (Norway) on seven each, and Harry Kane (England) on six. For the first time ever, three players have netted seven or more at the same World Cup. Underdogs have written some of the best stories. Curacao, the smallest nation ever to qualify, bounced back from a 7-1 loss to Germany by holding Ecuador to a draw. Qatar – despite a 6-0 defeat to Canada – managed a 1-1 draw with eventual quarterfinalists Switzerland. And Cape Verde, with 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha, produced one of the greatest underdog tales in tournament history, drawing with Spain, Uruguay, and Saudi Arabia to advance from the group stage. Is this the best World Cup ever? The numbers and the narratives certainly make a strong case.