Kylian Mbappé scored twice as France broke their World Cup record, but England won 6-4 in the third-place match.
Published July 18, 2026
Kylian Mbappé became the all-time leading scorer in World Cup history as England defeated France 6-4 in a chaotic World Cup third-place match.
Both teams had high aspirations for the 2026 tournament, but suffered a heartbreaking loss in the semifinals. France lost to Spain and England lost in the final stages against Argentina.
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Both coaches made multiple changes to their lineups for Saturday’s game in the heat and humidity of Miami, leaving many of their stars on the bench at the start.
England manager Thomas Tuchel removed Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham from his starting XI, while Deschamps, who left after 14 years in charge, left out Bradley Barcola and Ousmane Dembele.
Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice put England ahead in the third minute with a goal from distance, and Ezri Konsa headed home to make it 2-0.
Kylian Mbappé and Michael Oliseh were a threat, but England’s second-choice goalkeeper, Dean Henderson, has found himself in top form as France look to get back into the game.
The match threatened to become an embarrassment for France when Bukayo Saka made it 3-0 after a quick break.
Saka then scored his second goal of the match in stoppage time with the score 4-0, and Tuchel celebrated with a fist pump.
France coach Didier Deschamps told French television station M6 that the first half was “disastrous” and urged his men to show pride.
He made four changes, bringing on Dembele, Dayot Upamecano, Lucas Digne and Barcola, and it paid off almost immediately when Mbappe scored his ninth goal of the tournament to overtake Lionel Messi and take the top spot in the Golden Boot standings.
The face of the game changed, Barcola scored another point, and Deschamps clenched his fists on the bench.
Mbappe then scored his second goal of the match, scoring from a pass from Oliseh, making him the all-time leading scorer at the World Cup with 22 goals.
This puts him two points ahead of Messi in the race for top scorer in the 2026 tournament.
France squandered many chances to equalize and England had a chance to extend their lead when Maro Gust brought down Jed Spence inside the penalty area.
Saka rose to the spot and converted to complete his hat-trick.
There was still time for Dembele to score France’s fourth goal, but then Bellingham came forward and scored his 10th goal of the match with an individual effort.
This made Bellingham the first English player to score seven goals in a World Cup.
England finished third, securing their best World Cup result since winning the tournament in 1966, but the bitter memories of losing to defending champions Argentina will remain.
Deschamps led France to World Cup glory in 2018 and finished as runners-up four years ago.
Les Bleus got off to a sensational start and were favorites to win the 2026 tournament, but they lost 2-0 to Spain in the semi-finals.
Three-time champion Argentina will face European champion Spain in the final Sunday in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
