Kylian Mbappe Overtakes Legendary Striker With Champions League Milestone

Kylian Mbappé added another Champions League accomplish to his already impressive resume, surpassing Ruud van Nistelrooy to become the competition’s sixth all-time leading goalscorer.

The Frenchman was once again the hero for Real Madrid in a chaotic 2–1 victory over Marseille. Mbappé converted two goals from the spot for Los Blancos to secure all three points in Xabi Alonso’s first Champions League match in charge of the 15-time European champions.

The brace gives Mbappé 57 goals on Europe’s biggest stage at just 26 years old. The France international is now above Van Nistelrooy in the competition’s all-time scoring list and tied with Thomas Müller in sixth place, a feat he accomplished in just 88 Champions League appearances.

Check out where the Real Madrid superstar ranks among the best goalscorers in Champions League history below:

Top 10 Champions League Goalscorers in History

*Excludes qualifying goals.

Mbappé still has a long way to go before he reaches the heights of Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Roberto Lewandowski, but he is well on his way to becoming one of the most prolific goalscorers in European history.

In fact, the forward needs just one more goal to overtake Müller and take sole possession of sixth place.

The Champions League milestone comes amid a sublime start to Mbappé’s 2025–26 campaign. The striker leads Real Madrid with six goals in five appearances. His brace lifted Los Blancos past Marseille on a night where the home team lost both of their starting right backs for different periods. Trent Alexander-Arnold seemingly picked up a hamstring injury while Dani Carvajal was sent off with a straight red card.

Since his move to the Spanish capital, Mbappé has scored 50 goals in 64 appearances in a white shirt. Any worries about his slow transition from Paris Saint-Germain to Real Madrid are nothing more than a distant memory.

How Many Games Did it Take Kylian Mbappé Compared to Ruud van Nistelrooy?

As mentioned, Mbappé reached 57 goals in 88 total appearances. Van Nistelrooy beat the Frenchman to the mark hitting 56 goals in 73 appearances, but of course Mbappé now has his sights set higher up the leaderboard after passing the Dutchman.