Why Haaland and Mbappe Never Became Football’s Defining Rivalry

Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe were expected to inherit the Messi and Ronaldo era, but in practice they have met on the pitch only twice in six years. Their second meeting may come on Friday night, when France face Norway for first place in the group, although Haaland is expected to start on the bench. The piece argues that the long-promised rivalry has never fully materialized, despite both being among the best forwards of their generation.

Mbappe, 27, moved for 180 million euros, reached the last two World Cup finals, and is among the favorites to win the current World Cup. Haaland, 25, leads Manchester City and has won two Premier League titles. Last season they scored 42 and 38 goals respectively, yet both finished without a trophy. Their clubs, Real Madrid and Manchester City, have also developed a modern Champions League rivalry, meeting in the knockout rounds in five straight seasons.

The main reason the comparison has never caught fire is that they do not play in the same league, unlike Messi and Ronaldo, who faced the same teams and chased the same domestic titles week after week. Even in Europe, their meetings have been scarce, only three Champions League clashes in total, two of them in 2019/20. Since Haaland joined City and Mbappe moved to Madrid, they have met only once in a match City won 3-2 in Madrid, while Haaland missed the return leg in which Mbappe scored a hat-trick at the Bernabeu. This season they met three times, with Mbappe unused once, missing another through injury, and coming off the bench in the third, when Haaland was replaced in the 56th minute and Mbappe entered in the 69th.

The article adds that injuries, squad rotation, and Champions League format changes have kept them apart in the biggest moments. Messi and Ronaldo met in major Champions League stages far more often and came from a period when their teams regularly reached the semifinals or beyond. Haaland and Mbappe, by contrast, have not consistently reached that level, and the new Champions League system has not yet created the same aura around their duels. The writer also notes that they may be too similar, both physically dominant stars at super-rich clubs, to create the same cultural contrast that defined Messi versus Ronaldo, while younger names like Lamine Yamal are already drawing more attention. Still, the piece concludes that both remain historic players, and a future Champions League quarterfinal or semifinal could finally give the rivalry a proper start.