The new era is here. Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland have both made it clear they’ll be competing for the 2022/23 UEFA Champions League golden boot. But first they’ll have to unseat veteran Robert Lewandowski, who did better than both by netting a hat-trick in his first Champions League match for Barcelona.
The two young stars — Mbappe is 23 and Haaland is 22 — both logged two goals each in their opening Champions League group match of 2022/23, leading their respective clubs to victory. But one day later, the 34-year-old Lewandowski did one better with a trio of goals against Viktoria Plzen. The home match was his best chance to pile on the goals given Bayern Munich and Inter Milan are also in Barcelona’s group.
There are three other players who also registered braces in their opening group stage match: Tottenham’s Richarlison, Shakhtar Donetsk’s Marian Shved, and Napoli’s Piotr Zielinski. Richarlison rescued Spurs at home, 25-year-old Ukrainian winger Shved contributed to Shakhtar’s shock win at RB Leipzig, and Zielinski netted twice against Liverpool.
The table below is updated after each round of matches, beginning with the group stage. Assists are used as the first tiebreaker, and the second tiebreaker is fewest minutes played. Both are in line with the top scorer tiebreakers that European governing body UEFA implemented for the European Championships.
Forget the Ronaldo vs. Messi debate.
Haaland vs. Mbappe is here 😅 pic.twitter.com/So3grziHvH
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) September 6, 2022
MORE: Benzema joins all-time Champions League elite scorers
Champions League Top Scorers 2022/23
Updated as of Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2022
| Rank | Player | Team | Goals (PKs) | Assists | Matches | Mins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Robert Lewandowski | Barcelona | 3 (0) | 0 | 1 | 90 |
| 2. | Marian Shved | Shakhtar Donetsk | 2 (0) | 0 | 1 | 62 |
| Erling Haaland | Manchester City | 2 (0) | 0 | 1 | 70 | |
| Kylian Mbappe | PSG | 2 (0) | 0 | 1 | 90 | |
| Piotr Zielinski | Napoli | 2 (1) | 1 | 1 | 74 | |
| Richarlison | Tottenham | 2 (0) | 0 | 1 | 90 | |
| 7. | Mykhaylo Mudryk | Shakhtar Donetsk | 1 (0) | 2 | 1 | 90 |
| Eden Hazard | Real Madrid | 1 (0) | 1 | 1 | 60 | |
| Phil Foden | Manchester City | 1 (0) | 1 | 1 | 70 | |
| Alex Grimaldo | Benfica | 1 (0) | 1 | 1 | 90 | |
| Lassina Traore | Shakhtar Donetsk | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 20 | |
| Weston McKennie | Juventus | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 45 | |
| Mislav Orsic | Dinamo Zagreb | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 76 | |
| Rafa Silva | Benfica | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 79 | |
| Luka Modric | Real Madrid | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 80 | |
| Alexis Saelemaekers | AC Milan | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 80 | |
| Vinicius Jr. | Real Madrid | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 80 | |
| Raphael Guerreiro | Borussia Dortmund | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 86 | |
| Marco Reus | Borussia Dortmund | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 86 | |
| Noah Okafor | RB Salzburg | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 89 | |
| Jude Bellingham | Borussia Dortmund | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 90 | |
| Ruben Dias | Manchester City | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 90 | |
| Mohamed Simakan | RB Leipzig | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 90 | |
| Edson Alvarez | Ajax | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 88 | |
| Steven Berghuis | Ajax | 1 (0) | 1 | 1 | 81 | |
| Steven Bergwijn | Ajax | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 81 | |
| Mohammed Kudus | Ajax | 1 (0) | 1 | 1 | 89 | |
| Marcus Edwards | Sporting CP | 1 (0) | 1 | 1 | 73 | |
| Francisco Trincao | Sporting CP | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 79 | |
| Nuno Santos | Sporting CP | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 11 | |
| Jan Sykora | Viktoria Plzen | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 79 | |
| Franck Kessie | Barcelona | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 81 | |
| Loubadhe Abakar Sylla | Club Brugge | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 90 | |
| Luis Diaz | Liverpool | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 90 | |
| Giovanni Simeone | Napoli | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 49 | |
| Zambo Anguissa | Napoli | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 90 | |
| Ferran Torres | Barcelona | 1 (0) | 1 | 1 | 25 | |
| Mario Hermoso | Atletico Madrid | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 22 | |
| Mateus Uribe | Porto | 1 (1) | 0 | 1 | 90 | |
| Antoine Griezmann | Atletico Madrid | 1 (0) | 0 | 1 | 29 | |
| Leroy Sane | Bayern Munich | 1 (0) | 1 | 1 | 84 |
There have been 47 goals scored in the 2022/23 Champions League, including one own goal by Inter Milan’s Danilo D’Ambrosio.
Champions League Golden Boot 2021/22
The 2021-22 Champions League scoring crown was claimed by Karim Benzema. He didn’t score in the final against Liverpool, but he did enough damage in the previous knockout rounds to finish on 15 goals, two better than Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski, but short of Cristiano Ronaldo’s single-season record of 17 (2013/14).
Benzema, who also won the scoring race in La Liga with 27 goals, had a magical season in the Champions League, willing Real Madrid into the final with his goals. His three goals against Man City in the semis were critical, and in the quarterfinals Benzema silenced Chelsea’s home crowd with three goals in the first leg, and then he scored the decisive blow in extra time of the second leg.
| Rank | Player | Team | Goals (PKs) | Assists | Matches | Mins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Karim Benzema | Real Madrid | 15 (3) | 1 | 12 | 1106 |
| 2. | Robert Lewandowski | Bayern Munich | 13 (3) | 3 | 10 | 876 |
| 3. | Sebastien Haller | Ajax | 11 (1) | 1 | 8 | 668 |
| 4. | Mohamed Salah | Liverpool | 8 (1) | 2 | 13 | 1008 |
| 5. | Riyad Mahrez | Man City | 7 (2) | 2 | 12 | 986 |
| Christopher Nkunku | RB Leipzig | 7 (0) | 0 | 6 | 531 | |
| 7. | Leroy Sane | Bayern Munich | 6 (0) | 6 | 10 | 798 |
| Kylian Mbappe | PSG | 6 (0) | 4 | 8 | 673 | |
| Arnaut Danjuma | Villarreal CF | 6 (1) | 2 | 11 | 906 | |
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Man United | 6 (0) | 0 | 7 | 611 | |
| Darwin Nunez | Benfica | 6 (1) | 0 | 10 | 613 | |
| 12. | Rodrygo | Real Madrid | 5 (0) | 2 | 11 | 505 |
| Sadio Mane | Liverpool | 5 (0) | 1 | 13 | 822 | |
| Roberto Firmino | Liverpool | 5 (0) | 0 | 7 | 323 | |
| Lionel Messi | PSG | 5 (2) | 0 | 7 | 630 | |
| 16. | Vinicius Junior | Real Madrid | 4 (0) | 6 | 13 | 1199 |
| Thomas Muller | Bayern Munich | 4 (0) | 3 | 10 | 778 | |
| Timo Werner | Chelsea | 4 (0) | 2 | 5 | 246 | |
| Pedro Goncalves | Sporting CP | 4 (1) | 2 | 5 | 329 | |
| Antoine Griezmann | Atletico Madrid | 4 (0) | 2 | 9 | 518 | |
| Gabriel Jesus | Man City | 4 (0) | 1 | 8 | 352 | |
| Luis Diaz | Liverpool/ Porto |
4 (0) | 1 | 13 | 908 |
- 3 goals: 20 players
- 2 goals: 30 players
- 1 goal: 111 players
NOTE: There were nine own goals among the total of 380 scored in the tournament.
Champions League Top Scorers (since 1992-93)
Here are the top scorers for each UEFA Champions League tournament since the new format was adopted in 1992-93.
No surprise as to who the players are who have topped the list on most occasions: Cristiano Ronaldo has led the charts seven times, and Messi six. Their dominant run has happened in the past 15 editions of the Champions League, though neither has claimed the honor in the past three campaigns.
| Year | Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-22 | Karim Benzema | Real Madrid | 15 |
| 2020-21 | Erling Haaland | B. Dortmund | 10 |
| 2019-20 | Robert Lewandowski | Bayern Munich | 15 |
| 2018-19 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 12 |
| 2017-18 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid | 15 |
| 2016-17 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid | 12 |
| 2015-16 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid | 16 |
| 2014-15 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 10 |
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid | 10 | |
| Neymar | Barcelona | 10 | |
| 2013-14 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid | 17 |
| 2012-13 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid | 12 |
| 2011-12 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 14 |
| 2010-11 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 12 |
| 2009-10 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 8 |
| 2008-09 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 9 |
| 2007-08 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Man United | 8 |
| 2006-07 | Kaka | AC Milan | 10 |
| 2005-06 | Andriy Shevchenko | AC Milan | 9 |
| 2004-05 | Ruud van Nistelrooy | Man United | 8 |
| 2003-04 | Fernando Morientes | AS Monaco | 9 |
| 2002-03 | Ruud van Nistelrooy | Man United | 12 |
| 2001-02 | Ruud van Nistelrooy | Man United | 10 |
| 2000-01 | Raul Gonzalez | Real Madrid | 7 |
| 1999-00 | Mario Jardel | Porto | 10 |
| Rivaldo | Barcelona | 10 | |
| Raul Gonzalez | Real Madrid | 10 | |
| 1998-99 | Andriy Shevchenko | Dynamo Kyiv | 8 |
| Dwight Yorke | Man United | 8 | |
| 1997-98 | Alessandro Del Piero | Juventus | 10 |
| 1996-97 | Milinko Pantic | Atletico Madrid | 5 |
| 1995-96 | Jari Litmanen | Ajax | 9 |
| 1994-95 | George Weah | PSG | 7 |
| 1993-94 | Hristo Stoichkov | Barcelona | 5 |
| 1992-93 | Franck Sauzee | Marseille | 5 |