New York: England wrapped up third place at the FIFA World Cup with a thrilling 6-4 victory over France in the bronze medal match, delivering their highest finish at the men’s tournament since lifting the trophy in 1966.
The remarkable contest featured 10 goals, making it the highest-scoring third-place play-off in World Cup history and surpassing the previous record of France’s 6-3 win over West Germany in 1958.
Bukayo Saka was the star of the evening, becoming only the second England player to score a hat-trick in a World Cup knockout match after Sir Geoff Hurst’s famous treble in the 1966 final. Saka also became just the second player to score a World Cup hat-trick against France, following Pelé’s achievement in 1958.
The #ThreeLions' best-ever World Cup finish on foreign soil 👊 pic.twitter.com/AUVdkZzAGB
— England (@England) July 18, 2026
England put the disappointment of their semi-final defeat to Argentina behind them in emphatic fashion, storming into a four-goal lead before half-time.
Declan Rice and Ezri Konsa struck early before Saka added two goals to leave France trailing 4-0 at the break, the first time they had been four goals behind at half-time since April 1930.
France mounted a spirited comeback after the interval. Kylian Mbappé scored twice, with Bradley Barcola also finding the net, reducing the deficit to 4-3 and putting pressure on England.
Mbappé’s brace also moved him ahead in the race for the 2026 World Cup Golden Boot and saw him overtake Lionel Messi to become the competition’s all-time leading scorer with 22 goals. Saka completed his hat-trick from the penalty spot in the 87th minute after Djed Spence was brought down by Malo Gusto.
Although Ousmane Dembélé made it 5-4 deep into stoppage time, Jude Bellingham capped the dramatic encounter by weaving through the French defence to score England’s sixth goal in the 98th minute and seal the victory.
The defeat marked the first time France had ever conceded six goals in a World Cup match and the first occasion they had shipped six in any international fixture in 66 years. It also brought an end to Didier Deschamps’ tenure as France manager.
Bellingham concluded an outstanding tournament with seven goals, the most ever scored by an England men’s player at a single World Cup.
Former England defender Stephen Warnock praised the performance, calling it “some of the best free-flowing football” seen during the tournament. Ex-England midfielder Danny Murphy echoed the sentiment, describing the match as one of the finest displays of football he had watched, saying it “had everything.”
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