European Golden Shoe 2024/25: Rivals close in on Lewandowski

Carlo Garganese

• Updated: 21 Dec 2024 16:59 CST
• 15 min read

The European Golden Shoe award is up for grabs in the 2024/25 season and defending champion Harry Kane faces a tough task to retain his title.

Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe are among the continent’s elite strikers who are expected to make a fierce challenge to Kane as they also bid to win the European golden boot.

Kane won his first European Golden Shoe title last season, scoring 36 times in a stunning debut campaign for Bayern Munich, albeit one which did not end with the team trophies he craved after leaving Tottenham.

READ MORE: Premier League 2024/25 Top Scorers

That total of 36 goals and 72 Golden Shoe Points was the same as Haaland had posted a year before for Manchester City in the Premier League when the Norway forward won his first Golden Shoe crown.

Mbappe will like his chances of winning the Golden Shoe race for the first time after moving from Paris Saint-Germain to Real Madrid ahead of this season, as he looks to bounce back from a disappointing Euro 2024 campaign.

While France star Mbappe is yet to come out on top in the Golden Shoe charts, he has been very close on multiple occasions, scoring at least 27 goals in five of his final six seasons playing for PSG in Ligue 1 and regularly challenging for a podium spot.

That run included a 33-goal season in 2018/19 that saw him finish just three short of Lionel Messi, which was the last time the Argentina great triumphed during his stunning career at Barcelona.

READ MORE: Manchester United 2024/25 Top Scorers

As Real Madrid's new leading light, Mbappe will now hope to score the most goals in Europe for 2024/25, although team-mate Jude Bellingham and Barca’s Robert Lewandowski will be among a host of other top contenders.

The big names often triumph in this award, but there have also been surprise winners in the past, including Lazio’s Ciro Immobile in 2019/20.

This page will be updated throughout the 2024/25 season with regular updates on the European Golden Shoe standings.

READ MORE: Champions League 2024/25 Top Scorers

For the time being our table below tracking the European Golden Shoe standings will only list players from the top five European leagues, where the winner is most likely to emerge from.

Players from outside the top-five leagues in Europe are eligible to win the Golden Shoe, but the winner has not come from one of those divisions since 2002.

European Golden Shoe Standings

Mohamed Salah, Cole Palmer, Marcus Thuram, Mason Greenwood and Bradley Barcola are among the leading contenders in the race to win the European Golden Shoe title for the 2024/25 season.

But the battle to win the European Golden Boot is currently being led by Barcelona star Robert Lewandowski.

Lewandowski has been in the lead since overtaking Manchester City star Erling Haaland, who held top spot in the scoring standings during the early weeks of the season.

Haaland has scored a stunning 13 goals in just 16 Premier League matches.

He is no longer the leader, though, as he was joined on double figures and then passed by an in-form Lewandowski in October. The Barcelona striker has now netted 16 times in 18 La Liga games, giving him the most goals in Europe’s top five leagues.

Harry Kane has had a brilliant first half of the campaign for Bayern Munich, and his latest hat-trick against Augsburg last month, his third treble in the Bundesliga this season, saw him move up to 14 goals.

But Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappe already has ground to make up.

We are only in December, but 17 players have already reached double figures and just three goals now separate Lewandowski at the top from Premier League top scorers Salah and Haaland, so everything is to play for.

Last weekend's action saw Lewandowski, Salah, Haaland, Omar Marmoush and Mateo Retegui all fail to score.

And Lewandowski went without a goal again this week as Barca were beaten 2-1 by Atletico Madrid on Saturday, so it's tighter than ever towards the top of the scoring standings as the chasing pack closes in fast.

It's been a dramatic month for Lewandowski and Haaland as they battle for top spot.

Barcelona and Lewandowski were in action away against Celta Vigo on November 23, the same day as Man City played at home to Tottenham in the Premier League.

City suffered a shock 4-0 defeat to Spurs, with Haaland missing chances, while Lewandowski scored for Barca to extend his advantage at the top of the scoring standings. There was still frustration for Hansi Flick's side, though, as they surrendered a two-goal lead to draw 2-2.

Barcelona were then at home against Las Palmas on November 30, so Lewandowski was eyeing the chance to extend his lead. It was also a big day for Kane, as Bayern took on Dortmund in Der Klassiker.

But Lewandowski did not score as Barca fell to a shock 2-1 defeat, while Kane had not found the target before being substituted in the draw with Dortmund due to injury.

Haaland therefore had a chance to gain ground on his main rivals when next took to the field on the Sunday. He faced Premier League Golden Boot rival Salah as Man City travel to Liverpool in a huge Premier League match at Anfield.

It was Liverpool who won 2-0, with Salah sealing the win by converting a late penalty. He therefore rose in the standings, which have tightened up significantly after Lewandowski, Kane and Haaland all went without a goal that weekend and in several subsequent weeks.

Haaland got his season up and running promptly, scoring for champions Man City in their 2-0 win at Chelsea on the opening weekend of Premier League action.

He then scored a brilliant hat-trick as Man City defeated Ipswich Town 4-1, with his treble completed by a long-range strike in the closing stages of the contest.

And Haaland ruthlessly added a second hat-trick in as many games away against West Ham to surge clear atop the Premier League scoring standings.

He scored two more goals in the MD4 home win over Brentford and then got his 10th league strike of the season in just five games by netting against title rivals Arsenal, becoming the fastest player to hit that figure.

Haaland also reached 100 Man City goals with that strike and, as things stand, has 13 goals and 26 Golden Shoe points.

The Norway star did not score for the first time in EPL play this season against Newcastle on MD6 and then also failed to net against Fulham and Wolves, giving his rivals some hope.

City ended up winning 2-1 against Wolves, a team Haaland usually fares well against, with a last-gasp header from John Stones making the difference, but their star striker could not score for the third straight league game.

Haaland netted for the first time in four Premier League games with the winning goal against Southampton, but his deficit to Lewandowski was not helped by his failure to score in a shock loss against Bournemouth in their next league match.

Pressure was on Man City and Haaland as they faced a trip to Brighton, looking to bounce back from losing three consecutive matches in all competitions.

But City ended up suffering a shock fourth straight loss, even though Haaland was able to score his 12th league goal of the season in the first half. He reached 13 with a goal at Crystal Palace, but Man City's poor form has persisted since then.

Lewandowski scored twice in his season opener away to Valencia and his late winner from then helped Barca to a 2-1 win over Athletic Bilbao.

And he was at it again when he struck to help Barca to a 7-0 victory over Real Valladolid to finish August on a high.

Two more goals from Lewandowski as Barca thumped Villarreal 5-1 on September 22 moved him further up the standings and well into the battle with Haaland.

And the Poland star netted the winner in a home win over Getafe just three days later.

Lewandowski then had a magnificent October, with seven La Liga goals in three matches. He scored a ruthless first-half hat-trick against Deportivo Alaves and netted twice in the 5-1 win over Sevilla in Barca's next game.

He then netted two of his side's four goals in the famous 4-0 away El Clasico win over Real Madrid on October 26.

After the October international break, Barca hoped Lewandowski could overcome a minor injury suffered on Poland duty in order to play Sevilla in La Liga.

He was able to not only play but score a double as Barca saw off Sevilla 5-1, taking full advantage of Haaland’s rare quiet spell in front of goal.

Lewandowski could not quite keep the momentum going prior to the November international break, as his lead was reduced.

Barca defeated Espanyol 3-1, but he was not among the goalscorers in that game, with team-mate Raphinha instead impressing.

Lewandowski and Barcelona were then beaten 1-0 away against Real Sociedad, but he is still in first place after scoring against Celta Vigo in the first match back after the international window. Raphinha also scored in a dramatic 2-2 draw that saw Barca surrender a two-goal lead.

Lewandowski was rested when Raphinha scored twice in the 5-1 win at Mallorca, but returned with a goal in the 2-2 draw away to Real Betis on December 7.

Defending champion Kane, along with Mbappe and Haaland, started the campaign among the most likely contenders to score the most goals in Europe for 2024/25.

But the Bayern striker came into the season on a massive low after England lost a second consecutive Euros final, with his performances coming in for scrutiny despite scoring three goals at the tournament.

Kane did not score in his team’s first Bundesliga match against Wolfsburg, but he did then get his Golden Shoe defence up and running with a penalty against Freiburg on MD2.

And since then he has embarked on a remarkable goalscoring surge, having smashed a hat-trick in MD3 as Bayern won 6-1 away to Holstein Kiel on September 14 and getting another goal against Werder Bremen. He also netted four goals in Bayern's Champions League opener versus Dinamo Zagreb.

Kane got his second Bundesliga hat-trick of the season for Bayern in their thumping 4-0 win over Stuttgart on October 19 and a double against Union Berlin further boosted his cause before a third league treble of the campaign arrived against Augsburg in a 3-0 win on November 22.

However, an injury suffered in the first half of Der Klassiker against Dortmund stalled Kane's progress for a while. He is now back on the pitch, though did not score against RB Leipzig on Friday.

Mbappe’s hopes to challenge in the Golden Shoe race did not get off to an ideal start. Although he netted a debut goal in the UEFA Super Cup, his first three Real Madrid matches in La Liga saw him unable to make a scoring start, with Mallorca, Real Valladolid and Las Palmas all keeping him out.

There was relief on MD4, though, as Mbappe finally get off the mark with a double against Real Betis, giving Real Madrid a much-needed 2-0 win, while he added other goals in the wins over Real Sociedad, Espanyol and Deportivo Alaves.

He then missed a brief period of time with an injury but scored his first goal for Madrid since returning with a fine strike against Celta Vigo.

Mbappe's team-mate Vinicius Junior was one of the players to make a big move up the standings before the November international break, as his fine hat-trick helped Real Madrid to a 4-0 win over Osasuna.

France star Mbappe then struck in a 3-0 victory over Leganes after that international window and netted with an excellent strike against Getafe. His most recent strike came in the win over Girona.

Greenwood has been prominent in the race to win the European Golden Shoe award since the first week of the campaign, as he scored twice to start his league season on a high with Marseille.

He kept that early form going by netting in an entertaining 2-2 draw with Reims.

Greenwood also netted twice in Marseille's 3-1 win at Toulouse and has since reached 10 goals for the campaign

But he is not the only Ligue 1 player to have made a fast start in the Golden Shoe charts, with Bradley Barcola in the goals for PSG so far.

Barcola scored as a substitute in the first match of the season at Le Havre before starting and netting two more as his team thrashed Montpellier 6-0 on August 23.

He struck again in the away win at Lille, got another double against Rennes on September 27 and then netted against Strasbourg.

Barcola struck once more against rivals Marseille and his double in the 4-2 win at Angers on November 9 took him to 10 league goals for the campaign, making him the the first Ligue 1 player to hit double figures.

However, he has since been overtaken by Lille's Jonathan David.

As you might expect, it's still tight at the top before the halfway stage of the season.

Marcus Thuram and Mateo Retegui are also on the rise after scoring Serie A hat-tricks. Thuram's came against Torino, while Retegui downed Genoa.

Andrej Kramaric, Jonathan David and Noni Madueke were among the players who scored hat-tricks early in the season for Hoffenheim, Lille and Chelsea respectively. Alexander Isak added his name to that list on December 21 with a ruthless treble in Newcastle's 4-0 win at Ipswich Town, helping him to hit double figures for the campaign.

And Mohamed Salah netted in each of Liverpool's first three matches and has since moved on to 13 Premier League goals, so he is rising in the chasing pack as the campaign reaches a busy stage, with UEFA Champions League football also now part of the mix in a hectic run of fixtures leading up to the festive period.

Who won the European Golden Shoe - Previous Winners

Lionel Messi has won the most European Golden Shoe titles. The Inter Miami forward has triumphed on six occasions.

Messi's last success was in 2018/19 for Barcelona and he did not win the award during either of his two years with PSG.

Cristiano Ronaldo is his closest challenger with four career wins, though the Al-Nassr attacker has not come out on top since 2014/15 when he was at Real Madrid, with his second spell at Manchester United not hitting the heights of his first.

Robert Lewandowski’s triumph in 2021/22 means there are 10 players who have two Golden Shoe awards each, a list that also includes Luis Suarez and Thierry Henry.

Messi holds the record for most goals and points in a season as well. He remarkably scored 50 goals in 2011/12, earning himself 100 points.

READ MORE: Chelsea 2024/25 Top Scorers

Ronaldo has come closest to breaking that, scoring 48 goals for 96 Golden Shoe points when he last won the crown in 2014/15.

Argentina forward Messi is the only player in European Golden Shoe history to win the title three years in a row, doing so from 2016/17 until 2018/19. Lewandowski is the last to win it back-to-back.

Ronaldo, though, is one of only four players to have won the title with different clubs. The others to have achieved that feat are Luis Suarez, Diego Forlan and Mario Jardel.

READ MORE: Real Madrid 2024/25 Top Scorers

Lewandowski became the first Bundesliga winner since 1972 with the first of his two triumphs in the 2020/21 season, with his remarkable 41 goals from 29 games for Bayern being the best goal tally since 2015.

That came after Ciro Immobile won the 2019/20 European Golden Shoe, scoring 36 goals for Lazio in a tremendous Serie A season.

READ MORE: Most Assists In Europe 2024/25

It was Immobile's first title, with the striker becoming the first Serie A player to have the most goals in Europe since Francesco Totti triumphed for Lazio's rivals Roma in 2006/07.

Ligue 1 has not produced a winner since Josip Skoblar in 1971.

France's top flight might have expected to win multiple Golden Shoe titles in the modern era given the likes of Messi, Mbappe and Zlatan Ibrahimovic have played in the league, but the competition looks likely to have to wait a while longer for one of its players to be crowned, particularly with Mbappe now heading to Spain..

Success for Erling Haaland in 2022/23 gave the Norway star his first European Golden Boot title.

Haaland was the first Premier League winner since Suarez achieved the feat with Liverpool in 2013/14.

Harry Kane dethroned Haaland last season, meaning a Bayern player has impressively won the award in three of the last four campaigns.

What are the European Golden Shoe rules and weightings?

Only league goals are eligible for points in the European Golden Shoe award.

READ MORE: EPL 2024/25 Most Assists

Each strike earns points in a weighted system depending on the quality of league.

The five elite leagues - Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A and Ligue 1 - all carry a weighting of 2, meaning that a player will be awarded two points for every goal they score in these competitions.

For the leagues ranked sixth to 21 in Uefa's coefficients rankings - which includes the top-flights in Portugal and Netherlands - goals scored are given a weighting of 1.5, and goals scored in a league outside the top 21 are given a weighting of 1.

READ MORE: Arsenal 2024/25 Top Scorers

That was not always the case in the European Golden Shoe. From 1968 until 1991, the award simply went to the highest goalscorer on the continent, regardless of the strength of league.

Awards were not initially handed out between 1991 until 1996, when the new system came into force. Since then, only two players playing outside what were the five highest-ranked leagues at the time have ever won the Golden Shoe - Henrik Larsson (2000/01) and Mario Jardel (2001/02).

The Golden Shoe has been tied in the past, most recently when Suarez and Ronaldo shared the honour in 2013/14. Going forward, though, the award will be given to the player who has played the fewest minutes if two of them end up on the same number of points.

This page covers the 2024/25 European Golden Shoe race. All the details from the 2023/24 season can be found here.