The French team closed their journey at the 2026 World Cup with a 4-6 defeat to England in the third-place match. Besides the disappointing result, captain Kylian Mbappe also became a topic of controversy because the action took place right after the first half.
According to British media, when the two teams left the field for halftime with a 4-0 advantage in favor of the "Three Lions", Mbappe was caught holding the England national team jersey, while midfielder Declan Rice held the French national team jersey. This image shows that the two players changed jerseys right in the middle of the match, instead of waiting until the match ended as usual.
Not long after that, a video recording Mbappe shirtless, smiling and chatting with coach Thomas Tuchel on the way back to the field also quickly spread on social networks. The German coach once coached Mbappe at Paris Saint-Germain, so the close relationship between the two is not surprising. However, the time of the conversation made many fans question.
Former England international Owen Hargreaves commented briefly: "Strange. Very, very strange".
Many fans also believe that Mbappe changing shirts and appearing comfortable when the French team just went through a forgettable half is an inappropriate image, even though this is just a third-place match.
However, the striker born in 1998 showed a completely different face after the break. Mbappe played prominently in the second half with a double, contributing to helping the French team narrow the gap from 0-4 to 4-5, before Jude Bellingham sealed a 4-6 defeat in injury time.
These two goals also helped Mbappe increase his record to 10 goals at the 2026 World Cup, temporarily surpassing Lionel Messi by two goals in the top scorer race before the final match between Argentina and Spain takes place.
However, Mbappe's personal performance was not enough to help the French team win third place. This is also the last match of coach Didier Deschamps as captain of "Les Bleus", closing a 14-year journey with the national team.
At the Miami stadium, England soon created a big gap with goals from Declan Rice, Ezri Konsa and a double from Bukayo Saka in the first half. After the break, France rose strongly thanks to a double from Mbappe and goals from Bradley Barcola, Ousmane Dembele. However, Saka's hat-trick from the penalty spot and Jude Bellingham's goal in injury time helped the "Three Lions" win 6-4 overall.
