England defeated France 6-4 in the 2026 men’s World Cup third-place playoff, completing the highest-scoring match in the fixture’s history. The result gave England their best tournament finish since the 1966 title and their strongest men’s World Cup performance outside their home country.

Declan Rice put England ahead before Ezri Konsa headed in a corner from Rice. Bukayo Saka then scored twice to make the half-time score 4-0. The commanding advantage did not produce a quiet second half: France reduced the deficit to 4-3 through two goals from Kylian Mbappé and one from Bradley Barcola.

Saka converted a late penalty to complete his hat-trick and restore a two-goal margin. Ousmane Dembélé answered for France during added time, before Jude Bellingham scored England’s sixth in the 98th minute. Bellingham finished the tournament with seven goals, the highest total by an England player at a single World Cup.

Saka became only the second Englishman to score three times in a World Cup knockout match, following Geoff Hurst in the 1966 final. The only other player recorded as scoring a World Cup hat-trick against France was Pelé in 1958. His performance came after England played without Harry Kane.

Manager Thomas Tuchel said substitutions were shaped by fatigue, cramp and the changing rhythm of the match. He praised Saka as an essential player and said he had not kept track of the individual scorers during the ten-goal contest. Tuchel acknowledged that France’s all-out second-half approach came close to producing an equaliser before England finished the game.

The victory followed England’s semi-final defeat by Argentina, a performance criticised for poor control and conceding possession. Former England defender Martin Keown said the third-place match again showed control issues, but England’s attacking quality was enough. Another former defender, Stephen Warnock, supported continuing with Tuchel while noting disappointment with earlier tournament decisions.

England’s players collected bronze medals and completed a lap of honour. The playoff did not carry the stakes of the following day’s final between Argentina and Spain, yet its shifting scoreline made it a distinct tournament record. England moved from 4-0 to a one-goal lead, then scored twice more as France continued replying. Available reporting supports the record for this specific third-place fixture, rather than a claim that it was the highest-scoring World Cup match overall.

France’s four second-half goals prevented the match from becoming a simple account of England’s early dominance. Mbappé’s brace also made him the World Cup’s career leading scorer with 22 goals, one ahead of Messi. That record belonged to the opposing side even as England secured the bronze-medal finish.