In a frenetic match, England beat France 6-4 to take the bronze medal at the 2026 World Cup. The British dominated the first half and suffered in the second, but it was enough to secure third place in a match with a record number of goals. This goal-filled result (10) broke the record for this stage, surpassing that of the French against West Germany in Sweden 1958 (6-3; 9), and also entered the list of matches with the most goals in tournament history (5th; the 7-5 of Austria over Switzerland in 1954 is No. 1).
The match started with a quick strike from the British. In just 2 minutes, Declan Rice with a precise shot from outside the area scored the early 1-0. Although the French responded with a shot from Rayan Cherki saved by Dean Henderson, it was the ‘Three Lions’ who scored the next goal thanks to Bukayo Saka, although it was disallowed for offside by the Arsenal player himself.
Taking advantage of their opponent’s inability to settle, Thomas Tuchel’s side continued to press. At 18 minutes, Rice from a corner assisted Ezri Konsa, who headed in the 2-0. After the first cooling break, ‘Les Bleus’ looked a bit better, but the match became end-to-end. Among the most dangerous chances, there was an attempt by Marcus Rashford saved by Mike Maignan at 32 minutes and a shot by Kylian Mbappé cleared by Henderson moments later.
In the midst of this intense spell, England scored not only the 3-0 but also the 4-0. At 36 minutes, after a series of rebounds in the French area, Saka shot into a goal defended by Theo Hernández for the third, and at 44 minutes, after an excellent through ball from Eberechi Eze, the number 7 himself scored the fourth.
In the second half, Deschamps shook things up with four changes in a single window. The effect was almost immediate. At 48 minutes, Mbappé received a good assist from Michael Olise and made it 4-1, and a few minutes later, substitute Bradley Barcola did the same after a great pass from the No. 10 to cut the deficit to two goals. With a different demeanor, France continued their offensive dominance. At 66 minutes, after an exquisite combination of passes, Mbappé beat Henderson to score his double and make it 4-3.
Despite being closer to the fourth than their opponent to the fifth, ‘Les Bleus’ received the worst news: a penalty against them. At 84 minutes, substitute Malo Gusto brought down Djed Spence in the area and the referee did not hesitate to call the spot kick. The taker was Saka, who did not disappoint to score his personal hat-trick and make it 5-3. The fifth English goal seemed like the final nail, but the French did not give up. At 94 minutes, substitute Ousmane Dembélé received a long pass from Dayot Upamecano to make it 5-4. Despite having a few minutes to dream of an equalizer, at 97 minutes, substitute Jude Bellingham produced a great individual play and scored the final 6-4.
With this result, England won a third-place match at a World Cup for the first time. Previously they had played it twice, in Italy ’90 and Russia 2018, but on both occasions they lost to their opponent.
para mi estos bolitas ganaron xq tienen mas huevos q esos europeos trolos 10 goles? puro fulbo berreta menos mal q no ganaron los zurdos de mierda vamos carajo 6-4 barbaro
para mi 10 goles y la fifa se llena los bolsillos mientras el pueblo se caga de hambre inglaterra festeja el bronce pero deberian dar esa platita a los clubes de barrio chorros de mierda