A $29 Million Bronze: England Cashes In on World Cup Third Place

England’s bronze medal was not the only reward secured by the Three Lions at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. By finishing third, the English Football Association earned $29 million in performance prize money under FIFA’s official payout structure for the expanded 48-team tournament.

England claimed third place after defeating France 6-4 on Saturday, July 18, 2026, in a remarkable 10-goal contest at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami. It became the highest-scoring third-place playoff in FIFA World Cup history.

Bukayo Saka scored a hat trick to lead England to the bronze medal, while Kylian Mbappé struck twice during France’s second-half comeback. The French response, however, was not enough to overturn England’s commanding advantage.

France received $27 million for finishing fourth, meaning England’s victory was worth an additional $2 million in performance prize money, as well as the bronze medal and a higher position in the tournament’s final standings.

FIFA allocated $655 million in performance-based prize money for the tournament. The world champions will receive $50 million, while the runners-up will earn $33 million. Third place is worth $29 million and fourth place $27 million. Quarterfinalists receive $19 million each, round-of-16 teams earn $15 million, round-of-32 teams receive $11 million and group-stage exits are awarded $9 million.

FIFA later increased the overall financial resources distributed to the 48 participating associations to $871 million. The April 2026 package raised preparation funding from $1.5 million to $2.5 million and qualification funding from $9 million to $10 million, while also providing additional support for delegation expenses and ticket allocations. The officially listed performance prize for third place remained $29 million.

England therefore left the tournament with a bronze medal and a significant financial reward after missing out on the final against Argentina. France finished fourth following defeats to Spain in the semifinal and England in the third-place playoff.