England secured third place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a breathtaking 6-4 victory over France at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, watched by a crowd of 64,478. Bukayo Saka's hat-trick was the centrepiece of a remarkable bronze medal match that produced ten goals and nearly gave France the most extraordinary of comebacks.

England's stunning first half

Thomas Tuchel's side were ruthless in an opening 45 minutes that left France stunned. Declan Rice broke the deadlock before Ezri Konsa added a header, and Saka struck twice to give England an almost unthinkable 4-0 lead at the interval. France, two-time world champions, looked wholly disinterested throughout the opening period.

Mbappe's historic second half

Didier Deschamps' side emerged from the dressing room a transformed outfit. Kylian Mbappe scored twice in the second half, his double taking his World Cup goal tally to 22 — surpassing every player in the tournament's history to become its all-time leading scorer. Bradley Barcola then reduced the deficit further with a goal off the bench, and with substitute Michael Olise missing two glorious opportunities to level the tie, the game teetered on a knife's edge.

England steadied their nerves when Djed Spence was brought down by Malo Gusto's challenge inside the penalty area, and Saka stepped up to complete his hat-trick from the spot — his third goal of the afternoon and a moment that appeared to end the contest.

Late drama and Bellingham's record

Yet the drama refused to die. Ousmane Dembele arrived off the bench to pull a goal back in the 96th minute, cutting the deficit to two and reviving France's faint hopes of avoiding defeat in Deschamps' final match as their manager. But two minutes later, fellow substitute Jude Bellingham ended the contest with the match's tenth goal, setting the record for the most goals scored by an England player at a single World Cup — seven in total.

The result gives England their finest World Cup finish since 1966, when they lifted the trophy on home soil. The performance, and Saka's in particular, only deepened the frustration surrounding their semi-final elimination at the hands of Argentina, in which the Arsenal forward was left on the bench for the entirety of the match.

Tuchel was met with boos from England supporters before kick-off, but the jubilation at full-time offered the German manager a measure of hope ahead of the 2028 European Championship, which England will host. France, meanwhile, will enter that same tournament under new management, with Zinedine Zidane set to take charge.