UNITED STATES, July 19, (v7n) – England defeated France 6-4 in a thrilling, high-scoring World Cup third-place play-off on Saturday, as Kylian Mbappe became the competition's all-time leading scorer with 22 goals.
While Lionel Messi's Argentina and Spain prepare for Sunday's World Cup final in New Jersey, the two losing semi-finalists clashed in the humidity of Miami for the bronze medal match. The first half was not the performance France coach Didier Deschamps wanted in his final match in charge, as his team collapsed. France made multiple changes from their semi-final defeat to Spain, and the new defence was in disarray as Declan Rice opened the scoring with a long-range effort before defender Ezri Konsa nodded in. Bukayo Saka added two more to put England 4-0 ahead at half-time.
An angry Deschaps described the first-half display as "catastrophic" and bolstered his line-up at the break with first-choice players. Within three minutes of the restart, Mbappe scored his ninth goal of the tournament, and Bradley Barcola added another. Mbappe, 27, then scored the goal that took him past Messi to become the top scorer in World Cup history with 22 goals over three tournaments—though Messi will have a chance to reclaim the record in the final.
Saka completed his hat-trick with a penalty, but when Ousmane Dembélé scored in the sixth minute of added time, it gave France hope of an improbable draw. However, Jude Bellingham stepped up to cap a superb tournament, becoming the first England player to score seven goals at a World Cup when he dribbled past the French defence for his side's sixth.
"I would have preferred not to be the all-time top scorer and to be playing tomorrow's match," said Mbappe.
As the finalists fine-tuned their preparations, a persistent, choking smog blanketed the eastern United States as wildfires in Canada sent heavy smoke billowing across the border. At one point, the smoke made New York City the most polluted city in the world. Some respite came from a storm that brought torrential rain on Saturday, with Sunday expected to be sunny.
US President Donald Trump will be among the 80,000 spectators at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford—his first tournament attendance—alongside Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, making it a gathering of all three host nation leaders. Trump hailed the World Cup as "the most successful sporting event, maybe in the history of the world," while FIFA chief Gianni Infantino said it had "exceeded all expectations."
Argentina are striving to become the first team since Brazil in 1962 to win back-to-back World Cups, while Spain seek a second title after their maiden victory in 2010. Sunday's showpiece is likely to be Messi's final World Cup curtain call. Coach Lionel Scaloni urged fans to make the most of seeing him lead out his team at age 39: "He has made history. He is a legend."
The battle-hardened three-time champions have shown an astonishing never-say-die attitude, including a dramatic late comeback against England in the semi-finals, while Spain have been almost flawless, conceding just one goal in seven matches and sweeping past France in the semi-finals.
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