Saka Hat-Trick Earns England 6-4 Win Over France in World Cup Third-Place Playoff
Bukayo Saka scored three times as England beat France in the highest-scoring match of the 2026 World Cup knockout stage.
By Source Reporters Newsdesk
Mon, 20 July 2026 · 1 min read
LONDON — Bukayo Saka scored a hat-trick as England defeated France 6-4 in the 2026 FIFA World Cup third-place playoff on Saturday, according to The Guardian. The result secured England a second consecutive third-place finish at the finals.
Saka struck three times in a free-flowing, 10-goal contest that The Guardian described as an "epic" thriller. France, the 2022 runners-up, replied with four goals of their own but could not contain England's forward line in an open encounter that became the highest-scoring match of the knockout phase.
The win offered England a positive close to a tournament in which they were beaten by Argentina in the semi-finals. France exited without a medal after a campaign that promised more from a squad packed with attacking talent.
The Guardian's match report credited Saka's clinical finishing as the difference, with England outscoring a French side that pressed high but left gaps at the back. The 6-4 scoreline was the most prolific of the knockout stage.
The 2026 World Cup, staged across the United States, Canada and Mexico, drew a global television audience in the hundreds of millions, underlining the tournament's reach well beyond traditional football markets.
Source: The Guardian, 18 Jul 2026 (via Google News).
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