England beat France 6-4 in the FIFA World Cup 2026 third-place playoff in Miami on Saturday, as Kylian Mbappé became the competition’s all-time leading scorer with 22 goals.
Bukayo Saka scored a hat-trick for England, while Jude Bellingham, Declan Rice and Ezri Konsa also found the net in the 10-goal contest.
Rice opened the scoring from distance in the third minute before Konsa headed England into a 2-0 lead. Saka then struck twice before halftime to give Thomas Tuchel’s side a four-goal advantage.
France coach Didier Deschamps made four substitutions at the interval after describing his team’s first-half performance as “catastrophic.”
Mbappé scored twice after the restart, taking his career World Cup total to 22 and moving him clear of the previous record. Bradley Barcola and Ousmane Dembélé also scored as France reduced the deficit.
Saka completed his hat-trick from the penalty spot after Malo Gusto fouled Djed Spence. Bellingham then scored England’s sixth with an individual run, becoming the first England player to reach seven goals at a single World Cup.
England goalkeeper Dean Henderson made several saves as France pressed for an equaliser during the second half.
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The result gave England their best World Cup finish since winning the tournament in 1966. France ended Didier Deschamps’ final tournament as head coach in fourth place after his 14-year tenure.
Argentina will face Spain in the World Cup final at New York-New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford on Sunday.
