Meghan L. HallUSA TODAY Network
Updated July 18, 2026, 7:48 p.m. ET
MIAMI GARDENS, FL ― England forward Bukayo Saka torched France for a hat trick in the third-place game win at the World Cup.
Saka scored his side’s third, fourth and fifth goals in a wild 6-4. win His third goal was key as France had rallied from a 4-0 deficit to cut the lead to 4-3.
Perhaps France didn’t get the memo that defense is not optional, despite the matchup at Hard Rock Stadium not being the one it wanted. In the third minute of the game, Saka’s teammate Declan Rice zipped the ball into the net to make the score 1-0. Then, at the 18th minute, Ezri Konsa knocked a ball through with a header to make it 2-0.
Unsurprisingly, Saka added another goal to make it 3-0 England in the 37th minute. France’s goalie was out of position, and after multiple tries to get around him and a nearby defender, Saka finally found the back of the net. Saka’s good fortune continued when he found pay dirt at the 46th minute with another goal.
Saka’s strike put England up 4-0 at halftime.
France had pulled to within 4-3 on two goals by Kylian Mbappe that gave him the Golden Boot lead and World Cup career record.
But Saka scored on a penalty kick to give England a 5-3 lead and earn him a place in World Cup history with a hat trick..
USA TODAY at the 2026 World Cup
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All games are being broadcast in the United States on Fox and FS1. Matches will also be broadcast in Spanish throughout the entirety of the World Cup on Telemundo and streaming on Peacock .
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World Cup knockout round format
The World Cup becomes a single-elimination tournament once the knockout stage begins. The 32 remaining teams have been placed into a bracket, and the field will halve itself during each ensuing round of the tournament until a winner is crowned.
The lone exception is that the two semifinal losers will play in a third-place game ahead of the World Cup final.
World Cup knockout stage bracket, matchups, schedule
Round of 16
- July 4: France def Paraguay – Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia
- July 4: Morocco def Canada – Houston
- July 5: Norway def Brazil – East Rutherford
- July 5: England def Mexico – Mexico City
- July 6: Spain def Portugal – Arlington
- July 6: Belgium def USA – Seattle
- July 7: Argentina def Egypt – Atlanta
- July 7: Switzerland def Colombia – Vancouver
Quarterfinals
- July 9: France def Morocco – Foxborough
- July 10: Spain def Belgium – Inglewood
- July 11: England def England – Miami
- July 11: Argentina def Switzerland – Kansas City
Semifinals
- July 14: France vs. Spain – Arlington
- July 15: England vs. Argentina – Atlanta
Final
- July 19 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey
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