Saka Hat-Trick Outlasts Record-Breaking Mbappé As England Edge France In Historic World Cup Epic
England and France played out a breathtaking 10-goal thriller in the 2026 FIFA World Cup third-place playoff on Saturday, as the Three Lions secured the bronze medal with a chaotic 6-4 victory at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.
Bukayo Saka completed a spectacular hat-trick with a late penalty, ensuring Thomas Tuchel’s side erased the heartbreak of their semi-final collapse. The match also saw French captain Kylian Mbappé secure his place in football immortality, netting twice to become the all-time leading goalscorer in World Cup history with 22 goals.
Often labeled the game that no one wants to play after semi-final heartbreak, this bronze-medal clash defied expectations to deliver a historic goal glut. Heavy pre-tournament favorites France, whose campaign came unstuck in a 2-0 semi-final loss to Spain, looked completely caught cold early on.
England capitalized ruthlessly on French sluggishness to race into a stunning 4-0 first-half lead. Declan Rice ignited the onslaught in the third minute, intercepting a pass from Désiré Doué before unleashing a brilliant long-range strike into the bottom right corner past a stranded Mike Maignan.
Ezri Konsa doubled the lead in the 18th minute, rising highest to power home a perfect Rice corner while a bench-bound Harry Kane applauded. Although Dean Henderson smothered an early Mbappé effort, England made it 3-0 in the 37th minute. Marcus Rashford drew Mike Maignan out in a one-on-one break before teeing up Saka, who rifled the ball into the net.
Saka then added a fourth on the stroke of halftime, latching onto an Eberechi Eze pass to beat Maignan low at the far corner, marking the first time in World Cup history that Les Bleus have trailed by four goals.
However, Didier Deschamps’ halftime alterations sparked an incredible second-half resurgence. In the 48th minute, Mbappé converted a Michael Olise pass to net his ninth goal of the tournament. The strike drew him level with Lionel Messi’s career tally of 21 World Cup goals. Six minutes later, Mbappé turned provider, slipping a delicious pass to Bradley Barcola, who beat Henderson at the near post to make it 4-2.
The historic moment arrived in the 66th minute. Olise squared the ball to Mbappé, who drilled a brilliant shot into the bottom corner. The goal marked his 10th of the tournament and his 22nd career World Cup goal, moving him clear of Messi as the greatest goalscorer in tournament history.
With the score poised at 4-3, an equalizer felt inevitable. Olise missed two golden opportunities to level matters, inexplicably firing wide from inside the box in the 80th minute.
France were left to rue those missed chances when Malo Gusto brought down Djed Spence inside the penalty area late on. Jude Bellingham handed the ball to Saka, who calmly slotted the 87th-minute penalty to complete his hat-trick and make it 5-3.
The drama didn’t end there. Ousmane Dembélé cut inside to pull one back for France, before Bellingham broke away in stoppage time to bury England’s sixth and put the seal on an unbelievable 6-4 victory.
The defeat brings down the curtain on the legendary international career of Didier Deschamps, who steps away as one of only three men to win the World Cup as both a player and a coach.
After such an entertaining bronze medal spectacle, global football fans will hope Sunday’s grand finale between Spain and Argentina can match the drama.
