Bellingham follows in the footsteps of Maradona and Pelé in breaking records
English star Jude Bellingham continues to write the chapters of his personal football epic at the 2026 World Cup, emerging as the primary architect and author of his national team’s victories after leading the Three Lions to the semi-finals with exceptional performances against Mexico in the Round of 16 and Norway in the Quarter-finals.
Data and statistics released by FIFA reveal a stunning campaign for the Real Madrid midfielder, who broke records that had stood for decades and etched his name in gold in World Cup history.
Bellingham entered the annals of the beautiful game through its widest doors during the tense Round of 16 clash against Mexico, which England won 3-2 at the legendary Azteca Stadium in Mexico City. He scored a remarkable brace within just 98 seconds of the first half.
With this double, the Real Madrid star became the first player to score two goals in a single match at this historic World Cup venue since Argentine legend Diego Maradona, who scored a brace against Belgium in the 1986 semi-finals, 40 years prior.
The English teenager did not stop there; he repeated the feat by scoring another brace against Norway in the Quarter-finals to lead his country to a 2-1 victory. This made him the first player to score consecutive braces in World Cup knockout stages since Maradona himself in 1986 against England and Belgium, and the second youngest player to achieve this historic milestone after Brazilian legend Pelé in the 1958 Sweden tournament.
The figures highlight the extraordinary offensive impact of the 23-year-old, raising his total World Cup goal tally to seven. Only French star Kylian Mbappé, with 12 goals, has scored more before reaching the age of 24.
Jude Bellingham has become England’s third-highest all-time World Cup scorer with seven goals, trailing Harry Kane’s 14 and Gary Lineker’s 10. Thanks to his six goals in the current edition, he is also the midfielder who has scored the most goals in a single World Cup tournament in history, and the third English player to score braces in two consecutive World Cup matches, following Lineker in 1986 and Kane in 2018.
The young star’s statistics extended beyond offensive efficiency to include leadership and early footballing maturity. During the Group Stage match against Ghana, Bellingham became the youngest player in English football history to reach 50 international caps at the age of 22 years and 359 days.
In the Mexico match, Bellingham earned the title of the youngest player in history to reach 10 World Cup appearances at the age of 23 years and six days, breaking the previous record held by Argentine star Mario Kempes, who achieved this at 23 years and 334 days in the 1978 World Cup.
