Saka's hat-trick trumps Mbappe's double as England finish third in World Cup

God bless those who watched the FIFA World Cup 2026 third-place playoff between France and England at the Miami Stadium. It was a breathtaking 10-goal thriller that produced a hat-trick, a tournament assists record and a new World Cup goals milestone as England held off a spirited France comeback to secure a dramatic 6-4 victory and finish third.

Bukayo Saka starred for the Three Lions with a hat-trick, while Kylian Mbappe struck twice for France in a remarkable contest that swung wildly from one end to the other.

Mbappe's brace took him to the top of the tournament's Golden Boot standings with 10 goals, two ahead of Argentina captain Lionel Messi. The French captain also moved to 22 career World Cup goals, overtaking Messi's tally of 21. Michael Olise, meanwhile, registered his seventh assist of the tournament, setting a new record for the most assists by a player in a single World Cup, surpassing Pele's previous mark.

England were dominant in the opening half, racing into a 4-0 lead through captain Declan Rice, Ezri Konsa and a first-half brace from Saka. Thomas Tuchel's side appeared to have learned from their semifinal defeat to Argentina, maintaining their attacking intent instead of retreating after taking the lead and repeatedly exposing France with swift counter-attacks.

Rice opened the scoring in the third minute after intercepting a French move in his own half before driving into the attacking third and unleashing a powerful strike from outside the box that flew into the bottom-right corner beyond Mike Maignan.

France tried to respond, with Mbappe and Rayan Cherki leading several dangerous attacks, but England remained clinical. Konsa doubled the lead with a towering header from Rice's corner before Saka made it 3-0 after Marcus Rashford's effort was saved by Maignan and his own rebound was initially cleared off the line. Rashford regained possession, drew Maignan out of position and squared the ball for Saka, who made no mistake with his second attempt.

England continued to pile on the pressure before the break as Saka latched onto a pass from Eberechi Eze, created space with two quick touches and fired past Maignan to put the Three Lions 4-0 up.

Having been thoroughly outplayed in the first half, Didier Deschamps responded by introducing Dayot Upamecano, Lucas Digne, Ousmane Dembele and Bradley Barcola after the restart in a bid to inject fresh attacking impetus.

The changes paid immediate dividends.

Upamecano won possession on the right before feeding Olise, whose perfectly weighted pass found Mbappe inside the box. The captain calmly guided a first-time finish into the bottom-right corner to pull one back for France.

Barcola then reduced the deficit further with a brilliant solo effort, surging past England's defence before drilling a low finish beyond Dean Henderson to make it 4-2.

France's relentless pressure continued to mount, and they were rewarded again when Olise produced another incisive pass to release Mbappe inside the area. The striker kept his composure to slot home his second goal of the evening and bring France within one goal at 4-3.

With momentum firmly on France's side, the game was suddenly alive again.

England, however, steadied themselves at the perfect moment. In the 87th minute, Djed Spence was brought down inside the penalty area by Malo Gusto, and Saka stepped up to convert the resulting spot-kick with confidence, completing his hat-trick and restoring England's two-goal cushion.

France refused to surrender. Deep into stoppage time, Dembele unleashed a thunderous strike to make it 5-4 after England failed to clear their lines, setting up a nervy finale.

But England had the final say. As France pushed everyone forward in search of an equaliser, Jude Bellingham collected the ball on the counter, skipped past the retreating defenders and calmly slotted home England's sixth goal to seal a memorable 6-4 victory.

The final whistle brought an end to an extraordinary contest and to Didier Deschamps' final match as France coach. Though Les Bleus fell short, they produced a stirring second-half comeback that almost erased a four-goal deficit. England, however, held their nerve in one of the most entertaining matches of the tournament to finish third in spectacular fashion.