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FWC Final from 6am MondayEngland win 10-goal Cup thriller in battle for bronze
Simon Peach • July 19th, 2026 11:41 am
A Bukayo Saka hat-trick has seen off France in the World Cup third-placed playoff in Miami | Photo: AP
England have 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-placed play-off win.
An occasion that started with boos for the heavily-criticised manager on Saturday (Sunday NZT) ended in a breathless bronze medal, with the wounds from their 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.
England's Declan Rice opened the scoring in the match no nation want to play in at the World Cup | Photo: AP
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 added-time strike.
