England Beats France, Top Match Stats & Highlights from World Cup 2026 3rd-Place Win

What... a... match.

England survived a furious France comeback effort on Saturday, winning the World Cup third-place match by a 6-4 margin. But the scoreline alone doesn't reflect the full chaos that ensued.

The Three Lions appeared well on their way to absolutely smoking France, taking a 4-0 lead into halftime behind Bukayo Saka's brace and goals from Declan Rice and Ezri Konsa.

But France staged a brilliant comeback effort behind Kylian Mbappé's brace and goals from Bradley Barcola and Ousmane Dembélé in the second half.

Saka converted a late penalty to secure a hat trick and offer England some much-needed breathing room, and Jude Bellingham scored the 10th goal of the match to ensure that France didn't pull off a comeback for the ages.

It was breathless, thrilling, chaotic, astonishing... pick your adjectives of choice. If the final between Argentina and Spain is half as exciting, we're in for quite a treat.

History was also made. Mbappé's ninth and 10th goals of the tournament put him two goals clear of Lionel Messi in the Golden Boot race and one ahead of him for the most tallies in World Cup history (22).

In a game of two very distinct halves, England held 54 percent of possession, a 5-4 edge in corners and an 11-9 advantage in shots on goal (both sides had 19 total shots). France, meanwhile, had a 2.87-2.58 advantage in expected goals.

The French were absolutely diced apart on the counter in the first half by England, perhaps not a shock with William Saliba hurt and Dayot Upamecano out of the lineup as Didier Deschamps chose to rotate much of the squad.

For much of the tournament France have played an aggressive, high-pressing style, keeping opponents pinned deep in their own territory. But Spain completely controlled the game in the midfield in the semifinals and England's attacking talent ran free on the counter in the third-place game, rendering France's own attackers a non-factor for much of the match.

That attacking talent certainly awoke in the second half, however, and England's struggles to close out a win bubbled to the surface in a comically drastic way. Not many teams find themselves hanging on for dear life after taking a 4-0 lead.

But credit to England, they ultimately secured the win. It was great fun for the neutrals and quite the appetizer for Sunday's final.