Everything you need to know about the France vs England third-place match at the 2026 World Cup
Kick-off time, both teams' road to this match and head-to-head history: here's everything to know ahead of the 2026 World Cup third-place match between France and England on July 18 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens.
France and England meet on July 18 at 21:00 GMT at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, for the 2026 World Cup third-place match, after both were eliminated in the semi-finals.
Both teams' road to the semi-finals
France cruised through their first four matches: a 3-0 win over Sweden in the Round of 32, then 1-0 against Paraguay in the Round of 16, 2-0 over Morocco in the quarter-final, before falling 0-2 to Spain in the semi-final. England's run was more eventful: a 2-1 win over DR Congo, then 3-2 against Mexico, 2-1 over Norway in the quarter-final — ending Erling Haaland's tournament — before losing 1-2 to Argentina in the semi-final.
Head-to-head history: a clear French edge in recent years
The two nations have met 32 times in history, with England holding a slight overall edge (17 wins to France's 10, and 5 draws), though most of England's wins date back to before 1950. In recent meetings, France remain unbeaten in seven of their last eight games against England (5 wins, 2 draws), with the exception of a friendly defeat at Wembley in 2015. At World Cup level, England won the first two meetings (2-0 in 1966 and 3-1 in 1982), before France won 2-1 in the quarter-final in Qatar in 2022 — their last official meeting before this match.
Key storylines ahead of the match
With no silverware at stake, the match still carries real weight in the Golden Boot race: Kylian Mbappé is tied at the top with Lionel Messi on 8 goals each, but Argentina's final will be played a day after this match, giving Mbappé a chance to move ahead alone before Messi gets his last shot at goal. Harry Kane, meanwhile, has 6 goals and Jude Bellingham 4, with both hoping to add to their tallies before the tournament ends. Ousmane Dembélé, France's second-top scorer with 5 goals, also remains one of Les Bleus' key attacking threats for this match.
