The English striker begins another campaign in Germany after scoring 36 goals in the Bundesliga during the 2025-26 season, an impressive total that still left him five goals short of the record established by Lewandowski.
Harry Kane Wants to Break Lewandowski’s Historic Record
Harry Kane has already proven almost everything since arriving at Bayern Munich, but there is still one record that seems designed to challenge even one of the best goalscorers in the world: Robert Lewandowski’s 41 goals in a single Bundesliga season.
The gap may seem small when talking about a goalscorer like Kane. The problem is that going from 36 to 41 means entering territory that only one player has ever reached in the history of the competition.
Lewandowski’s 41 Goals That Once Seemed Impossible
For almost half a century, the ultimate benchmark belonged to Gerd Müller.
The legendary Bayern Munich striker scored 40 goals during the 1971-72 season, and his record stood for 49 years. It appeared to be one of those marks destined to last forever until Lewandowski came along.
The Polish striker scored 41 goals during the 2020-21 campaign and needed until the final matchday to surpass Müller. Even more impressive is the fact that he reached that total in only 29 Bundesliga appearances.
Since then, nobody has come as close as Kane.
The Englishman has already finished with 36 goals in two different seasons in Germany. The most recent came in 2025-26, when he also won the European Golden Shoe after scoring 36 times in the Bundesliga and finishing the campaign with 61 goals in 51 appearances across all competitions.
Kane Has Turned the Bundesliga Into His Territory
The numbers help explain why thinking about the record is not unrealistic.
Kane has scored 98 goals in just 94 Bundesliga appearances since arriving from Tottenham Hotspur in 2023. He has also finished as the league’s top scorer in each of his first three seasons with Bayern Munich.
Last season, he needed an average of just 66 minutes to score each of his Bundesliga goals and recorded four hat-tricks. His 36 goals accounted for more than 29 percent of the goals scored by a Bayern side that went on to establish its own offensive record.
It is precisely that ability to consistently produce goals that keeps the possibility of catching Lewandowski alive.
Kane is also just two goals away from reaching 100 in the Bundesliga, another extraordinary milestone considering that he is only beginning his fourth season in Germany.
Dietmar Hamann Believes Kane Has the Quality, but It Will Not Be Easy
Quality does not appear to be the problem. Minutes could be.
Former Bayern Munich and Germany player Dietmar Hamann believes Kane has the ability required to break Lewandowski’s historic record, although he also believes accomplishing it will be extremely difficult.
“Is he capable of doing it? Yes, of course he is,” Hamann said in comments made in association with ToonieBet, although he later admitted that he does not believe Kane will ultimately surpass the record.
The German knows exactly how extraordinary it is to reach such a figure. Before Lewandowski, Müller’s record had survived for almost five decades and appeared virtually impossible to break.
Hamann also pointed out that Kane has already produced remarkable seasons since arriving in Germany and has still finished four or five goals short of the Polish striker’s record.
“I think if you want to beat it, you probably have to play at least 30, probably 32, maybe all the games,” the former midfielder explained.
The Schedule Could Be Kane’s Biggest Enemy
That is where one of the biggest obstacles for the English striker emerges.
With the UEFA Champions League, DFB-Pokal and Bundesliga on the schedule, Vincent Kompany will have moments when he needs to manage his star striker’s workload, especially now that Kane is 33.
For Hamann, a deep run by Bayern Munich in the Champions League could ultimately work against the striker’s chances of breaking the record.
The German believes that if Bayern once again reach the decisive stages of the European competition, there could be Bundesliga matches in which Kane is rested or plays fewer minutes, particularly if the domestic title race is already under control.
“If you want to beat it, you probably have to play at least 30, probably 32,” Hamann insisted, once again emphasizing the consistency the Englishman will need.
The logic is simple. If Bayern have a Bundesliga match between two UEFA Champions League quarterfinal or semifinal games, Kompany could decide to protect his main striker rather than take any unnecessary risks.
To reach the 42 goals needed to definitively surpass Lewandowski, Kane would have to average approximately 1.24 goals per game if he appeared in all 34 league matches. If he plays only 30, that requirement would rise to 1.4 goals per game.
That is where the true scale of the challenge becomes clear.
Can Harry Kane Break the Record?
Extremely difficult. Impossible? No.
And even Hamann agrees with that.
Kane has already proven that he can score 36 goals in a single season and has produced remarkable consistency since arriving at the Allianz Arena.
Interestingly, Lewandowski did not need to play every match to make history either. The Polish striker reached his 41 goals in just 29 appearances during the 2020-21 season, surpassing Müller’s record by one goal after it had stood untouched for 49 years.
Kane will need an almost perfect season: staying healthy, playing around 30 or more league matches, maintaining his extraordinary efficiency and avoiding too much rotation when the decisive stages of the UEFA Champions League arrive.
Lewandowski’s record still looks like an enormous mountain to climb.
But if there is currently one striker in the Bundesliga capable of trying to reach the summit, it is Harry Kane.
Harry Edward Kane
FC Bayern München
