Saka Hat-Trick Fires England to 6-4 Win Over France in World Cup Thriller

Bukayo Saka scored a hat-trick as England survived a remarkable second-half comeback from France to secure a thrilling 6-4 victory and finish third at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

England appeared to have the bronze medal secured after dominating the first half.

Declan Rice opened the scoring after just 134 seconds with a stylish strike from outside the box before Ezri Konsa doubled the advantage.

Saka then took control of the contest, scoring twice before half-time to send England into the break with a commanding 4-0 lead.

France responded spectacularly after the interval.

Kylian Mbappé opened their account in the 48th minute after being played through by Michael Olise, before setting up Bradley Barcola to reduce the deficit further.

Mbappé then scored again to make it 4-3 and give France genuine hope of completing one of the greatest comebacks in World Cup history.

England were placed under intense pressure but finally secured victory when Saka converted a penalty in the 87th minute after Malo Gusto brought down Djed Spence.

Ousmane Dembélé scored in stoppage time to make it 5-4, but Jude Bellingham ended France’s hopes with England’s sixth goal in the eighth added minute.

The victory gave England a memorable third-place finish after an entertaining ten-goal encounter in Miami. Saka was named the Player of the Match after his outstanding hat-trick.

The match also produced several historic statistics. Rice’s opener came after just 134 seconds, making it England’s second-fastest World Cup goal, while Olise’s assist took his World Cup tally to seven, the most recorded by any player since official records began in 1966.

Mbappé, meanwhile, has now scored 10 goals in eight World Cup appearances in North America. Only Hungary’s Sandor Kocsis, with 11 goals in 1954, and France’s Just Fontaine, with 13 in 1958, have scored more in a single World Cup tournament.