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The match appeared over when England stormed into a 4-0 halftime lead, but France roared back after the break through two goals from Kylian Mbappe and strikes from Bradley Barcola and Ousmane Dembele.

Bukayo Saka restored England’s cushion with a penalty before Bellingham produced a brilliant solo goal in the 98th minute to cap one of the tournament’s most entertaining matches.

England made the perfect start in Atlanta, taking the lead after just three minutes when Declan Rice curled a superb long-range strike past Mike Maignan after capitalizing on a misplaced French pass.

France, still reeling from their semifinal defeat to Spain, struggled to settle as England dominated the opening half.

Ezri Konsa doubled the lead in the 18th minute with a free header from a corner before Saka took over. The Arsenal winger first had a goal ruled out for offside, then scored twice before halftime. His first came after a swift counterattack involving Marcus Rashford, while his second, in first-half stoppage time, deflected off Theo Hernandez to make it 4-0.

Mbappe offered France’s only real attacking threat before the break but was denied by Dean Henderson as England headed into halftime in complete control.

Didier Deschamps responded with four substitutions at halftime, and France immediately looked transformed.

Mbappe pulled one back in the 48th minute after being played through by Michael Olise, who matched Pele’s World Cup record of six assists in a single tournament.

Barcola reduced the deficit to 4-2 six minutes later after another flowing move before Henderson kept England ahead with an excellent save from Dembele.

France’s momentum continued as Mbappe struck again in the 67th minute, finishing confidently through the middle to make it 4-3. The goal moved him past Lionel Messi as the tournament’s leading scorer with nine goals.

England weathered the pressure and regained breathing room in the 87th minute when Djed Spence was brought down inside the area. Rather than taking the penalty himself, substitute Jude Bellingham handed the ball to Saka, who completed his hat-trick from the spot to make it 5-3.

The drama was far from over. Dembele curled home in the sixth minute of stoppage time to reduce the deficit to 5-4 and set up a frantic finish.

But England had the final say. In the eighth minute of added time, Bellingham collected the ball near midfield, dribbled past three defenders and calmly slotted home to complete a remarkable 6-4 victory moments before the final whistle.

The result secured England’s best World Cup finish since lifting the trophy in 1966, while France ended the tournament in fourth place.