Kylian Mbappe has secured the European Golden Shoe for the 2024–25 season, capping a remarkable debut campaign in Spain with 31 La Liga goals for Real Madrid. The French superstar struck twice in Real Madrid’s 2-0 win over Real Sociedad on Saturday, ensuring he topped the continent’s scoring charts and clinched the award for the first time in his illustrious career.
Despite Real Madrid finishing the season without any silverware, Mbappe’s individual brilliance stood out. His 31 goals not only earned him La Liga’s Pichichi Trophy for top scorer but also saw him edge out Sporting CP’s Victor Gyokeres and Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah in the Golden Shoe standings.
Though Gyokeres scored 39 league goals—eight more than Mbappe—the European Golden Shoe is calculated using a weighted points system. Goals scored in Europe’s top five leagues—Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A, and Ligue 1—are worth two points each. In contrast, goals from leagues ranked sixth to 22nd in UEFA’s coefficient rankings, such as Portugal’s Primeira Liga, are weighted at 1.5 points per goal.
As a result, Mbappe’s 31 goals in La Liga earned him 62 points. Gyokeres, despite his higher goal tally in the Portuguese league, accumulated 58.5 points. Salah finished third with 58 points, having scored 29 goals in the English Premier League.
Mbappe’s final-day brace put the award beyond the reach of his competitors. Salah, the only player with a realistic chance of catching him, needed a hat-trick in Liverpool’s final match of the season against Crystal Palace to draw level. However, the Egyptian forward could only find the net once in a 1-1 draw at Anfield, leaving him narrowly short.
This Golden Shoe triumph makes Mbappe only the third Real Madrid player in history to receive the honour. He joins an elite list that includes Hugo Sanchez, who won it in the 1989–90 season, and Cristiano Ronaldo, who claimed the award three times during his time at the Bernabéu (2010–11, 2013–14, and 2014–15).
Speaking after the final match of the season, Mbappe reflected on a bittersweet campaign. “It’s an honour to win the Golden Shoe, especially in my first season here. Of course, we wanted trophies as a team, but I’ve grown a lot this year and feel proud of what I’ve accomplished. This is just the beginning.”
Victor Gyokeres, meanwhile, finished the season with an astonishing 53 goals in all competitions for Sporting, including a goal in their 3-1 Portuguese Cup final victory over arch-rivals Benfica on Sunday. However, his last league appearance was the previous weekend, meaning he had no further opportunities to add to his league goal total for the Golden Shoe tally.
Gyokeres’s performances have reportedly attracted strong interest from top European clubs, with Arsenal said to be leading the chase for the Swedish striker this summer.
The final top five standings for the 2024–25 European Golden Shoe were:
- Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid) – 31 goals, 62 points
- Victor Gyokeres (Sporting CP) – 39 goals, 58.5 points
- Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) – 29 goals, 58 points
- Robert Lewandowski (Barcelona) – 27 goals, 54 points
- Harry Kane (Bayern Munich) – 26 goals, 52 points
Mbappe’s triumph further cements his place among Europe’s elite and serves as a personal milestone in a season that, while disappointing for Real Madrid overall, showcased his unmatched talent. As the 2025–26 campaign approaches, the 26-year-old will be aiming not only to defend his scoring crown but to bring major trophies back to the Bernabéu.
