England and France may have fallen short of reaching the FIFA World Cup 2026 final, but their extraordinary third-place play-off delivered one of the greatest goalscoring spectacles the tournament has ever seen.
Football supporters witnessed one of the wildest matches in World Cup history as England defeated France 6-4 in a breathtaking contest inspired by Bukayo Saka's hat-trick and Kylian Mbappe's brace.
Before kick-off, a Striver poll found that most supporters planned to skip the third-place playoff altogether. Ninety minutes later, those who did may have missed one of the greatest goalscoring matches in World Cup history.
The 10-goal thriller immediately entered the record books, becoming only the sixth FIFA World Cup match to feature 10 or more goals. It also ended a 44-year wait for another double-digit classic, with no World Cup fixture having reached that milestone since Hungary's famous 10-1 victory over El Salvador at Spain 1982.
Remarkably, only five other matches across the tournament's 96-year history have produced as many goals, placing England and France alongside some of football's most iconic World Cup encounters.
The Highest-Scoring FIFA World Cup Matches Of All Time
| Rank | Match | Tournament | Score | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Austria vs Switzerland | Switzerland 1954 | 7-5 | 12 |
| =2 | Brazil vs Poland | France 1938 | 6-5 (AET) | 11 |
| =2 | Hungary vs West Germany | Switzerland 1954 | 8-3 | 11 |
| =2 | Hungary vs El Salvador | Spain 1982 | 10-1 | 11 |
| =5 | France vs Paraguay | Sweden 1958 | 7-3 | 10 |
| =5 | England vs France | United States/Canada/Mexico 2026 | 6-4 | 10 |
England 6-4 France (2026)
The latest addition to the list produced everything.
England stormed into a remarkable 4-0 half-time lead through Declan Rice, Ezri Konsa and two Bukayo Saka goals before France launched an extraordinary comeback after the interval.
Kylian Mbappe scored twice, Bradley Barcola and Ousmane Dembele also found the net, while Saka completed his hat-trick from the penalty spot before Jude Bellingham wrapped up the scoring in stoppage time to seal England's bronze medal.
The result secured England's best World Cup finish since 1966 and produced the highest-scoring World Cup match in more than four decades.
France 7-3 Paraguay (1958)
For almost seven decades, France's 7-3 victory over Paraguay stood as the last World Cup match to produce 10 goals.
Just Fontaine scored a hat-trick as France overwhelmed Paraguay during the group stage before eventually finishing third.
Fontaine would finish the tournament with 13 goals, a single-edition World Cup record that still stands today.
Hungary 10-1 El Salvador (1982)
Spain 1982 remains the most recent World Cup to produce an 11-goal match.
Hungary completely dismantled El Salvador 10-1 in Elche, with substitute Laszlo Kiss famously scoring the fastest hat-trick in World Cup history after coming off the bench.
It remains the biggest victory in FIFA World Cup history.
Hungary 8-3 West Germany (1954)
One of the greatest teams football has ever seen tore apart West Germany during the group stage in Switzerland.
Ferenc Puskas inspired Hungary to an 8-3 victory, while Sandor Kocsis scored four goals. Ironically, the two nations would meet again in the final, where West Germany famously produced the "Miracle of Bern" to stun the previously unbeaten Hungarians.
Brazil 6-5 Poland (1938)
The 1938 World Cup delivered one of football's earliest classics.
Brazil edged Poland 6-5 after extra time thanks to a hat-trick from Leonidas, while Ernest Wilimowski scored an incredible four goals for Poland in defeat.
It remains one of only two World Cup matches to finish 6-5.
Austria 7-5 Switzerland (1954)
The highest-scoring World Cup match ever played remains untouched.
Austria recovered from 3-0 down after just 19 minutes to beat hosts Switzerland 7-5 in an astonishing quarter-final.
Twelve goals, relentless attacking football and extraordinary momentum swings have ensured the "Heat Battle of Lausanne" remains one of the greatest matches in football history.
Will The World Cup Goals Record Ever Be Broken?
World Cup football has produced thousands of matches across nearly a century, yet only a handful have earned legendary status through sheer goalscoring brilliance.
England's extraordinary 6-4 victory over France now joins that exclusive list. The third-place playoff became the first FIFA World Cup match to produce 10 goals since Hungary's famous 10-1 victory over El Salvador in 1982, and the highest-scoring World Cup contest in 68 years since France's 7-3 win over Paraguay in 1958.
While Austria's unforgettable 7-5 triumph over Switzerland in 1954 remains the highest-scoring match in tournament history, England and France reminded supporters why the World Cup continues to produce football's most unforgettable spectacles.
With the FIFA World Cup 2026 final between Spain and Argentina still to come, another classic may yet await. But regardless of what happens on Sunday, England and France have already delivered one of the defining matches of the tournament - one that will take its place among the greatest goalscoring games the World Cup has ever witnessed.
