Golden Boot vs Golden Ball: the difference between football's big awards

The Golden Boot goes to the player who scores the most goals, while the Golden Ball goes to the player judged the best overall. In short: the Boot is decided by a number, the Ball is decided by a vote — and that's the difference in one line.

The confusion is understandable, because both names appear at the World Cup, and one of them — the Golden Ball — also happens to be the literal translation of the Ballon d'Or. Here's how to keep them all straight.

The Golden Boot: top scorer

The Golden Boot is the simplest award in football: score more goals than anyone else and it's yours. No panel, no shortlist, no debate — just the scoring charts.

At the World Cup

The adidas Golden Boot goes to the tournament's top scorer. Because World Cups are short, ties happen, so FIFA uses tie-breakers in this order:

1. Most goals scored in the tournament.

2. If level, most assists.

3. If still level, fewest minutes played — rewarding the player who scored at the fastest rate.

Harry Kane won the 2018 World Cup Golden Boot with six goals for England, and Kylian Mbappé won it in 2022 with eight goals — including a hat-trick in the final — even though France lost that final to Argentina. That's the point: the Boot doesn't care whether your team wins, only whether you score.

In league football: the European Golden Shoe

Across a club season, the equivalent prize is the European Golden Shoe, awarded to the top scorer across all of Europe's domestic leagues. Because a goal in a stronger league is harder to come by, goals are weighted by UEFA's league coefficient ranking: goals in the top-ranked leagues count double (×2), goals in the next band count ×1.5, and goals elsewhere count once. A 30-goal season in one of Europe's top leagues therefore scores 60 points, which is why the award is almost always won by a striker from a major league.

The Golden Ball: best player — and here's the confusion

"Golden Ball" means two different things, and this is where most of the mix-ups start.

1. The adidas Golden Ball (World Cup)

At every FIFA World Cup, the adidas Golden Ball is presented to the best player of the tournament — not the top scorer. FIFA draws up a shortlist and accredited media vote for the winner. Lionel Messi won it in 2014 and 2022, making him the only player to win the World Cup Golden Ball twice, and Luka Modrić won it in 2018 after driving Croatia to the final.

A player can win both awards, but usually they go to different people: in 2022, Mbappé took the Boot while Messi took the Ball.

2. The Ballon d'Or (best player of the season)

Ballon d'Or is simply French for "Golden Ball." It's the award handed out by France Football since 1956 to the best player in the world over a full season, decided by a vote of specialist journalists. It has nothing to do with the World Cup trophy of the same name — though a great World Cup can heavily influence the Ballon d'Or vote in the same year. We've broken down exactly how it works in our Ballon d'Or explainer.

So when someone says "Golden Ball," check the context: a tournament award voted by media at the World Cup, or the season-long Ballon d'Or.

The Golden Glove: best goalkeeper

The World Cup also honours its best goalkeeper with the Golden Glove, chosen by FIFA's technical study group. It was previously called the Lev Yashin Award, after the legendary Soviet keeper — the only goalkeeper ever to win the Ballon d'Or. Emiliano Martínez won the Golden Glove in 2022 after Argentina's penalty-shootout triumph.

The awards at a glance

• Golden Boot (World Cup) — top scorer of the tournament — decided by goals, then assists, then fewest minutes.
• European Golden Shoe — top scorer across Europe's leagues in a season — decided by goals weighted by league coefficient.
• Golden Ball (World Cup) — best player of the tournament — decided by a media vote from a FIFA shortlist.
• Ballon d'Or ("Golden Ball") — best player in the world over a season — decided by a vote of international journalists.
• Golden Glove (World Cup) — best goalkeeper of the tournament — decided by FIFA's technical study group.

Follow who's chasing these prizes right now in our rankings and across our competitions.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between the Golden Boot and the Golden Ball?

The Golden Boot is a pure statistical award for the top goalscorer, while the Golden Ball is a voted award for the best overall player. A defensive midfielder could never win the Boot but can absolutely win the Ball, as Luka Modrić did at the 2018 World Cup.

Is the Golden Ball the same as the Ballon d'Or?

They share a name — Ballon d'Or literally means "Golden Ball" in French — but they are separate awards. The adidas Golden Ball covers one World Cup tournament and is voted on by media at the event; the Ballon d'Or covers a whole season of football worldwide and is run by France Football.

Can one player win the Golden Boot and Golden Ball at the same World Cup?

Yes, it's possible — nothing in the rules prevents it — but it's uncommon because the two awards measure different things. In 2022 they split: Kylian Mbappé won the Golden Boot with eight goals while Lionel Messi was voted the Golden Ball winner.

How are Golden Boot ties broken at the World Cup?

If two or more players finish level on goals, the award goes to the one with more assists; if they're still tied, it goes to the player with fewer minutes on the pitch, since they scored at the fastest rate.