England Claim Third Place at 2026 World Cup With 6-4 Victory Over France

England secured their best World Cup finish in sixty years on Sunday, defeating France 6-4 in Miami to claim third place at the 2026 tournament, a result that drew congratulations from outgoing Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and prompted widespread celebration from figures across British public life. The victory, achieved in a match of remarkable swings, confirmed England’s place on the podium at a World Cup for the first time since their solitary triumph on home soil in 1966.

Bukayo Saka delivered the defining individual performance of the match, scoring a hat-trick to underpin a dominant first-half display that put England 4-0 ahead at the interval. Ezri Konsa and Jude Bellingham also found the net, with Bellingham’s goal — a composed individual effort in the closing seconds — completing the scoring and setting a new record for England in a single World Cup tournament, his seventh of the competition. The margin of England’s first-half lead proved decisive, though the second half exposed the fragility of the scoreline as France mounted a sustained and threatening recovery.

Kylian Mbappé scored twice after the break for France, reducing the deficit to a single goal and raising the prospect of a dramatic comeback in the Miami heat. His brace carried significant statistical weight: Mbappé moved ahead of Lionel Messi to become the tournament’s top scorer and, with 22 World Cup goals in total, now holds the record for the most goals in the history of the competition. The French pressure ultimately fell short, and England held on to secure the result, but the second half served as a reminder of the margins that had separated the two sides from a place in the final.

Sir Keir Starmer, who is due to be succeeded as Prime Minister by Andy Burnham on Monday, posted a brief message on X following the final whistle: “Great result tonight @England. You’ve done us proud.” The statement, modest in length but conspicuous in timing, came at the close of both a tournament and a premiership. Former England captain Sir David Beckham was more expansive in his response, publishing a series of posts on Instagram that included images of Saka and Bellingham alongside the message: “Great way to end the tournament @England.”

Governing body FIFA also marked the occasion formally, posting a photograph of the England squad receiving their bronze medals with the caption: “Congratulations to @England, third place at @FIFAWorldCup 2026 — their best finish since winning the tournament in 1966.” The acknowledgement from football’s governing body completed a round of institutional recognition for a squad that had entered the tournament with expectations of challenging for the title, fell short in a semi-final defeat to Argentina, and ultimately recovered to secure a historic consolation.