The 2026 FIFA World Cup ended in heartbreak for two teams that were considered odds-on favourites to win the whole thing at the semi-final stage. France and England, having been eliminated just one step away from the final, will compete in the third-place play-off.
France, having qualified for the World Cup final in the last two tournaments, winning in 2018 and losing on penalties in 2022, failed to make it three in a row when they were caught in a stranglehold by current European champion Spain in a 2-0 defeat.
On the other hand, England, having made it to the semis in 2018 and losing to the French in the quarters in 2022, faced Argentina in their second final-four appearance in three World Cups. Having taken a 1-0 lead in the second half against the Albiceleste, the English side were dominated in the last half-hour of the game, eventually losing 2-1 to the defending world champions.
Today, we will look back at France vs England World Cup history. Their face-off in the past editions of this competition, and what is their head to head record in FIFA World Cups?
France vs England World Cup History
England and France are two of the biggest footballing nations in the world. They have three world titles between them and house two of the biggest domestic leagues in the sport. The two nations are also two massive cornerstones of European culture and have a 100-year-old off-field history between them.
The first England vs France game in the World Cup came in the 1966 FIFA World Cup, hosted by England. The two sides were put in the same group of four, which also included Uruguay and Mexico.
The Three Lions drew their first game against Uruguay 0-0 and defeated Mexico in their second by a scoreline of 2-0. Meanwhile, France drew 1-1 against Mexico and lost 2-1 to Uruguay. Both sides needed a good result to finish in the top two and ensure their place in the knockouts.
The last game of the group saw the two European giants face each other. However, it was clear that the English had the better team in this competition. Additionally, since they were hosting the match, England was considered the favourite to win in front of a 100,000-strong crowd at Wembley.
And that was exactly the result of this match. England striker and Liverpool legend Roger Hunt scored both goals for England in a 2-0 win. After topping this group, the home team went on to lift the trophy, winning their first and, so far, only World Cup title.
The next France vs England World Cup meeting came in the 1992 edition, played in Spain. The tournament had a different format. In the first round, six groups of four went into a round robin. Then, the top two teams from each group were put in four groups of three. The winner of each group then went into the knockouts.
England and France were in the same group in the first round alongside Kuwait and Czechoslovakia and played against each other in the first game. A crucial match was played at the San Mamés Stadium in Bilbao.
The match started hot, as Bryan Robson scored the fastest World Cup goal for England in the very first minute. However, the French team, much better equipped than their counterparts from 16 years ago, got the equaliser from the foot of Gerard Soler in the 24th minute.
The game went into half-time at 1-1. But then, in the second half, France started to fade out and looked tired. England, taking advantage of that, took the lead again in the 67th minute, with Robson scoring again.
As the match wore on, England looked better and better. Paul Mariner would score the third on the night for his team in the 83rd minute, and the match ended 3-1.
Both teams made it out of the group. And while England came second in the second group stage behind West Germany, France won their group, faced the Germans in the semi-final in an all-time classic, and lost on penalties after a 3-3 draw at full-time.
Another England vs France game in a World Cup, and as of now the most recent, would not come for 40 more years, as it wasn’t until the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar that the two teams would face off again. And this time, it was their most high-profile game yet, as they would compete in a quarter-final.
England came into the 2022 World Cup after finishing fourth in 2018. On the other hand, Les Blues won the 2018 World Cup in Russia. So the quarterfinal in 2022 promised to be an exciting affair.
French midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni gave his team the lead in the 17th minute. After a fine French play, which saw the team pass the ball around looking for a chink in the English armour, they finally found one when the Real Madrid midfielder rocketed the ball into the bottom net from outside the box.
In the 26th minute, VAR checked for a possible penalty for the Three Lions, but it was not given, so the first half ended with France in a one-goal lead.
England did have the better chances for much of the game. And the constant pressure got to France when, in the 54th minute, Tchouaméni gave away a penalty which was converted by Kane.
In the 78th minute, France took back their lead. Antoine Griezmann whipped a cross into the box, and Olivier Giroud headed the ball into the net, 2-1.
Then, in the 84th minute, England won another penalty, which was taken by captain Harry Kane. Kane, having already scored from the spot earlier in this half, missed the goal completely this time around, and France defeated England in a World Cup match for the first time.
Now, we will see a France vs England World Cup match in 2026, as the two teams will compete in the third place play-off of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The match will be
FAQs
Q. What Is The England vs France Head To Head Record In The World Cup?
A. France and England have faced off thrice in FIFA World Cups. While England won the first two encounters between the two in 1966 and 1982, France won their most recent World Cup match, which was a quarterfinal of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Q. Why do they have a third place play-off in the FIFA World Cup?
A. The third place play-off holds as much importance in the World Cup as any other game. The match counts towards FIFA’s team ranking for the competition, ensuring that the team that finished third and won $2 million more in prize money has to win a game to ensure its higher rank. The match also gives smaller countries, like Croatia in 2022, cherished podium finishes. Finally, the scoring and stats from this game add to players’ counts for this competition. For example, Kylian Mbappé, currently at eight goals in the 2026 World Cup, can surpass Lionel Messi by scoring in the third place play-off.
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