Washington, July 19 (SANA) England secured third place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a thrilling 6-4 victory over France in the third-place playoff at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on Saturday.
Bukayo Saka scored a hat-trick as England recovered from France’s second-half comeback attempt to seal the highest finish in the nation’s World Cup history.
England dominated the opening half, taking a 4-0 lead through Declan Rice in the third minute, Ezri Konsa in the 19th and two goals from Saka, including one in first-half stoppage time.
France responded after the break with three unanswered goals. Kylian Mbappé struck in the 49th minute before Bradley Barcola added another six minutes later. Mbappé scored again in the 66th minute to cut the deficit to 4-3 and became the all-time leading scorer in FIFA World Cup history with 22 goals.
Saka restored England’s two-goal advantage from the penalty spot in the 87th minute. Ousmane Dembélé scored for France deep into stoppage time, but Jude Bellingham sealed England’s victory moments later with the final goal of the match.
England had reached the third-place playoff after losing 2-1 to defending champions Argentina in the semifinals, while France were beaten 2-0 by Spain.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup concludes on Sunday with Spain facing defending champions Argentina in the final.
N.J/ABD
