England vs France Live commentary: How to follow World Cup third place match

Jul 17, 2026 - 10:30

England face France in the World Cup bronze medal match on Saturday.

The Three Lions were just five minutes away from a first World Cup final appearance since 1966 thanks to Anthony Gordon‘s goal.

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However, Chelsea star Enzo Fernandez fired an equaliser from distance, and in injury time, Lautaro Martinez headed home the winner for Argentina.

Meanwhile, Spain became the first team to book their spot in the final with a dominant 2-0 win over France in Texas.

La Roja were pre-tournament favourites and remain so as they head into the World Cup final against the South Americans.

Before the showpiece event, England clash with France in the third-place play-off in Miami.

How to follow England vs France

The fixture will take place on Saturday, July 18 and is scheduled for a 10pm kick-off BST.

They will meet at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida – home to the NFL side Miami Dolphins.

talkSPORT will be right across the action, providing live coverage of the game with commentary from Nigel Adderley and former England defender Micky Gray.

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The game will also be shown on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

England vs France: Squads

ENGLAND

Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford (Everton), Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace), James Trafford (Manchester City)

Defenders: Reece James (Chelsea), Trevoh Chalobah (Chelsea), Marc Guehi (Manchester City), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), John Stones (Manchester City), Jarell Quansah (Bayer Leverkusen – loan), Nico O’Reilly (Manchester City), Dan Burn (Newcastle), Djed Spence (Tottenham).

Midfielders: Declan Rice (Arsenal), Elliot Anderson (Nottingham Forest), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Jordan Henderson (Brentford), Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa), Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United), Eberechi Eze (Arsenal).

Forwards: Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Ivan Toney (Al-Ahli), Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Noni Madueke (Arsenal), Marcus Rashford (Barcelona – loan), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle).

FRANCE

Goalkeepers: Mike Maignan (AC Milan), Robin Risser (Lens), Brice Samba (Rennes).

Defenders: Lucas Digne (Aston Villa), Malo Gusto (Chelsea), Lucas Hernandez (Paris St-Germain), Theo Hernandez (Al Hilal), Ibrahima Konate (Liverpool), Maxence Lacroix (Crystal Palace), Jules Kounde (Barcelona), William Saliba (Arsenal), Dayot Upamenaco (Bayern Munich).

Midfielders: N’Golo Kante (Fenerbache), Manu Kone (Roma), Adrien Rabiot (AC Milan), Aurelien Tchouameni (Real Madrid), Warren Zaire-Emery (Paris St-Germain).

Forwards: Maghnes Akliouche (Monaco), Bradley Barcola (Paris St-Germain), Rayan Cherki (Man City), Ousmane Dembele (Paris St-Germain), Desire Doue (Paris St-Germain), Michael Olise (Bayern Munich), Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid), Jean-Phillipe Mateta (Crystal Palace), Marcus Thuram (Inter Milan).

England vs France: What’s been said?

In a game often dubbed the ‘losers final’, many believe FIFA forces players to compete in an underwhelming fixture.

The Three Lions previously played a third-place play-off match in 2018 against Belgium and lost out on taking home a medal.

Should England prevail over France, it will be their best finish at a World Cup since winning the tournament in 1966.

Tuchel said: “We have to wait for four years [to go again at another World Cup]. In itself it’s an achievement, of course it’s a semi-final.

“A lot of big footballing nations are eliminated before the semi-final. It is an achievement, no one wants to hear that at the moment, me neither, because we demand the most of ourselves because we are so competitive.

“The nature of being so competitive puts the next game into perspective.

“None of our players or none of the French players want to play in this match. Everyone plays to win the World Cup, but it is what it is.

“We have a day less than France to recover but we will do it professionally. The thing for us is to bounce back and react. That’s what you have to do at the highest level of sport and that we will do.”