England secured their best men's World Cup finish since 1966 in jaw-dropping fashion as Bukayo Saka’s hat-trick helped under-fire Thomas Tuchel’s side stave off relentless France in an extraordinary 6-4 third-place play-off win.
An occasion that started with boos for the heavily-criticised manager ended in a breathless bronze medal, with the wounds from Wednesday's semi-final collapse to Argentina still raw.
Saka’s brace followed goals from Declan Rice and Ezri Konsa in a remarkable first half that was followed by a scarcely believable second period in the Miami heat and humidity.
Kylian Mbappe #10 of France scores his team's third goal during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Bronze Final between France and England at Miami Stadium on July 18, 2026 in Miami Gardens, Florida.
Kylian Mbappe leads the Golden Boot race and is now top of the all-time World Cup scorers list
France came out swinging in Didier Deschamps' final match in charge as Kylian Mbappe scored a brace, taking charge of the Golden Boot race and becoming the top scorer in World Cup history with 22 goals.
Substitute Bradley Barcola scored the other and Les Bleus continued to pepper England’s goal as Tuchel stared down the barrel of even greater humiliation than three days ago.
But this England just held out. Saka scored a late penalty to complete his treble and substitute Jude Bellingham kept his cool after Ousmane Dembele’s earlier stoppage-time strike.
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