England led France 4-0 at halftime in the World Cup third-place playoff in Miami Gardens on 18 July 2026, but that was not the final score. France scored four times after the break, while England added two goals to win 6-4 at the Miami Dolphins’ home stadium. Declan Rice, Ezri Konsa and Bukayo Saka scored before halftime, with Saka netting twice in the opening half.
Saka completed a hat trick as England finished with six goals. France’s second-half response took the match to 10 goals, the most ever in a World Cup third-place playoff and the highest total in a World Cup match since Hungary beat El Salvador 10-1 in 1982, information from the Associated Press. The result secured England’s bronze-medal finish, its best World Cup placement since winning the tournament in 1966.
Kylian Mbappé scored twice for France, taking his tournament tally to 10 and earning the Golden Boot, according to BBC Sport. His goals made him a basic part of France’s second-half comeback, even as England held on for the win. The match was played a day before the scheduled final between Argentina and Spain. Before the playoff, France coach Didier Deschamps said, “We do have a match for the third place playoff, and there’s a duty.”
Deschamps coached France in the match. Zinedine Zidane has been discussed in coverage of a possible coaching change, including this report on the coaching succession, but the result itself does not establish a change in the national team’s leadership.
Third-place playoffs give teams a final chance to finish a tournament with a victory, and this one became the highest-scoring in World Cup history. England’s 6-4 win secured the bronze-medal position. France’s four second-half goals turned a 4-0 halftime deficit into a record-setting contest.
