World Cup third-place play-off endures, unpopular with players but prized by broadcasters and sponsors | OneFootball

The World Cup third-place play-off continues to exist, disliked by players yet valued by broadcasters and sponsors. It remains because it finalises the ranking and provides another broadcast slot.

France, beaten 0-2 by Spain, and England, edged 2-1 by Argentina in the semi-finals, have returned to training with little appetite for Saturday’s 23:00 meeting in Miami. According to L'Équipe, FIFA has kept this extra fixture since its introduction at the 1934 edition in Italy, after the inaugural 1930 tournament in Uruguay dispensed with it.

Despite persistent criticism, the game has never been dropped. France have played it three times, beating West Germany 6-3 in 1958 as Just Fontaine scored four to seal his record 13 goals, then losing 2-3 to Poland in 1982 and defeating Belgium 4-2 in 1986.

FIFA still stages it, unlike UEFA, which scrapped the third-place match from Euro 1984 in France onwards. The governing body says the game completes the official classification, confirming third and fourth without tie-breaks. For many nations, finishing third remains a meaningful target.

Commercial logic counts too. The fixture has outlived expansion to 48 teams and 104 matches, supplying a marquee slot on the eve of the final. M6, which paid €120 million for half of this World Cup’s matches, will broadcast France v England, expecting big audiences and strong advertising returns even if players are not keen.

Source: L'Équipe