Alan Shearer has openly criticized FIFA for the ‘pointless’ nature of the third-place playoff, voicing this opinion as England gears up to face France this evening.
After England’s loss to Argentina in the semi-finals on Wednesday, their dream of competing in Sunday’s New Jersey World Cup final against Spain has come to an end. Now, the spotlight shifts to a less thrilling affair as the Three Lions head to Miami to lock horns with France, who themselves succumbed to a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Spain on Tuesday, wrapping up the journeys of both teams in an anticlimactic end to their World Cup campaigns.
A long-standing critic, Shearer has consistently questioned the value of this fixture, a staple of the men’s World Cup lineup since its inception in 1934 and a regular feature since 1954.
Victory over France would mark England’s most successful World Cup run since their triumph in 1966. However, according to Shearer, such achievements are far from the team’s list of priorities.
In a statement to Betfair, Shearer remarked, ‘The World Cup’s third-place play-off is absurd. FIFA talks incessantly about player welfare, but now they are sending teams that are no longer in contention to Miami in sweltering 37 to 38-degree temperatures for this redundant match.’
Should England beat France, it would represent their best World Cup finish since winning the tournament in 1966, although former England striker Shearer believes that is not a priority
‘The players should be on their way home, if not home already and on holiday, rather than hanging around for another three or four days to play in a meaningless game,’ Shearer said
‘It’s absolute nonsense. The players should be on their way home, if not home already and on holiday, rather than hanging around for another three or four days to play in a meaningless game, which is only there to make more money.
‘People say it’s a chance to finish third in the world. No, let me tell you, all the players want to do now is go on holiday and get away from the tournament.
‘They’re knocked out and they’re not going to look back in 20 years’ time and say we were proud of finishing third or fourth. It’s nonsense for both France and England. We all know what this game is about unfortunately and it should be scrapped.’
There are financial incentives for finishing third rather than fourth, with the bronze medal-winning side taking home £21.4m ($29m), while the losers receive £19.9m ($27m).
In comparison, the winners of this year’s World Cup will be awarded £36.9m ($50m), while the runners-up will receive £24.4m ($33m).
The match will also give players the opportunity to close the gap on Lionel Messi in the Golden Boot race. Kylian Mbappe shares the lead with Messi on eight goals, while Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham both have six. If that remains unchanged after tomorrow night’s final between Argentina and Spain, Messi will claim the award after recording one more assist than Mbappe’s three.
Meanwhile, Shearer was particularly pessimistic following England’s latest semi-final exit, claiming that if the Three Lions do not win Euro 2028 ‘then (they) might never win it in my time’.
The 55-year-old said: ‘I feel as if we’re behind other nations at the minute. We are behind the two finalists, Argentina and Spain, and behind France too.
‘Come the Euros, somewhere along the line, we’re going to have to beat France or Spain. It looks as if Zidane is going to be France manager, so it’ll be really interesting to see what happens there.
‘Spain are brilliant. They’ve got some really talented young players and fresh players in their squad, so they’re probably going to be the team to beat again.
‘So, it’s not easy, you know, like it’s not easy winning the Champions League. There are some teams that are just going to be there all the time and Spain and France are some of those.
‘If we don’t win it in 2028, then we might never win it in my time, unfortunately, because we’re on home soil.’