Saka becomes fourth Englishman to score a World Cup hat-trick | OneFootball

Bukayo Saka fired England to FIFA World Cup 2026 bronze with a brilliant hat-trick in a breathless 6-4 victory over France in the third-place play-off.

The Arsenal forward became just the fourth England player to score a World Cup hat-trick, joining Geoff Hurst, Gary Lineker and Harry Kane in one of the nation's most exclusive goalscoring clubs.

Geoff Hurst was the first, famously scoring a hat-trick against West Germany in the 1966 World Cup Final to secure England's only world title.

Gary Lineker followed 20 years later with a treble against Poland in a must-win group-stage clash at Mexico 1986, before Harry Kane struck three times against Panama during England's 6-1 victory at Russia 2018.

Saka's treble proved decisive as England held off another dramatic second-half fightback to end the tournament on a high.

Saka's achievement adds another landmark to an already impressive international career. At 24, he also became only the third England player to score three or more goals across two separate World Cup tournaments, following Lineker and Kane.