History was made yesterday, 18th July, 2026 at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, the home ground for American football sides the Miami Hurricanes and Miami Dolphins, as England claimed their first bronze World Cup medal after beating France in a ten-goal thriller, the most goals ever in a single third-place match.

By securing the bronze medal, England is taking home $29 million in official performance-based prize money from FIFA. Because the 2026 World Cup features a record-breaking $871 million total prize pool, the financial rewards at the top are massive. England's victory earned them a $2 million bump over France, who collected $27 million for finishing fourth.

Every qualified nation is also guaranteed a base payment of $12.5 million just for reaching the tournament. When added to their third-place winnings, England's total payout from the tournament exceeds a staggering $41 million. This money goes directly to the English Football Association (FA), which will distribute a percentage of those earnings to the players and coaching staff as tournament bonuses.

To secure that massive payout, the Three Lions had to survive an unbelievable shootout. England raced out to a 4-0 lead by halftime, powered by goals from Declan Rice, Ezri Konsa, and a brace from Bukayo Saka.

However, Les Bleus exploded into life in the second half. Led by Kylian Mbappé, who scored twice to break the all-time World Cup scoring record, France fought back to make it 4-3, and eventually 5-4, keeping fans on the edge of their seats.

Ultimately, Saka secured his hat-trick with a late penalty, and Jude Bellingham put the game to bed with a stoppage-time counter-attack to seal the historic 6-4 victory.

Before this showdown, the record for the highest-scoring third-place playoff had stood for nearly 70 years, dating back to France's 6-3 win over West Germany in 1958. Yesterday's 10-goal bonanza also stands as the highest-scoring World Cup game in any stage of the tournament since 1982.