England beat Croatia 4-2 in the opening game of 2026, with Harry Kane scoring twice and Jude Bellingham and Marcus Rashford also scoring.
Published June 17, 2026
Harry Kane scored twice in the first half as England eventually beat Croatia 4-2 to begin their World Cup onslaught in Texas.
After Croatia leveled the score at 2-2 in Wednesday’s match, Jude Bellingham just after half-time and substitute Marcus Rashford with five minutes remaining ensured a winning start for Thomas Tuchel’s side.
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The versatile Kane put England twice in the lead in the first half, one of which was converted from a penalty, only for Martin Baturina and Petar Moussa to hit back for 2018 runners-up Croatia.
With both teams continuing to lose ground, they once again found themselves in danger of scoring heavily in the second half, and just two minutes were needed for Bellingham to put England back in front in front of a crowd of 70,000.
England had a number of chances to extend their lead in the immediate aftermath, but were unable to convert until Rashford came on.
The encounter was a repeat of the 2018 semi-final, which Croatia won 2-1 after extra time, but then England had the upper hand against one of the oldest teams in the North American competition.
Thomas Tuchel’s side got off to a tense start in front of a capacity crowd at the impressive, air-conditioned home of the Dallas Cowboys, aiming to bring England their first major trophy since 1966.
Then came the drama. Croatia’s talismanic captain Luka Modric caught Noni Madueke in the box with a dangling leg.
Kane’s unconvincing penalty was saved by Dominik Livakovic, but French referee Clement Tulpin ordered a retake after video replays showed the stopper had gone off his line.
Mr Tolpan had previously sent off Mr Tuchel in the Champions League, and the match referee had been in the spotlight in the British media this week.
Bayern Munich’s fiercest Kane was adamant a second time, firing a shot to Livakovic’s left, but this time in more ruthless fashion to give England the lead after 12 minutes.
It was all England now, and Real Madrid midfielder Bellingham (who preferred the number 10 role to Morgan Rodgers) burst onto the field and suffocated Livaković.
The drinks break was met with loud boos, as the game was played under a roof and not in the relentless Texas sun.
England should have taken a 2-0 lead in the 30th minute, but Bellingham just missed Madueke’s delicious low cross.
Croatia equalized in the 36th minute.
England wasted the ball in midfield, with Petar Susic leaving John Stones on the floor with some clean footwork to set up Baturina.
The 23-year-old met the ball for the first time and punched it past Jordan Pickford, who picked it up.
Zlatko Dalic’s side were level after just six minutes, although Declan Rice’s corner left Kane unmarked and the captain nodded home.
Captain Kane scored 10 goals at the World Cup, equaling Gary Lineker for the most of any English player.
Coach Tuchel, who has made it clear that his goal is to win the World Cup, rarely smiled.
Ending a frenetic first half, Musa took advantage of a weakness in England’s defense in the fifth minute of stoppage time and smashed the ball home from close range to make it 2-2.
The second half began just as the first half had ended with a goal, with Bellingham sprinting unopposed down the right flank and rolling the ball into the corner.
England beat Croatia’s goal and Kane and Nico O’Reilly had two great chances each to give Bellingham a 4-2 lead.
With 15 minutes left and England falling behind, Croatia had several chances but Rashford safely sealed the three points.
