England’s 2026 World Cup campaign has ended at the semi-final stage, extending a painful run of near-misses stretching back nearly a decade.
The defeat adds to back-to-back European Championship final losses in 2021 and 2024, along with a previous World Cup semi-final exit in 2018.
Yet despite the disappointment, there remain genuine reasons for optimism as England look ahead to the next chapter of their international journey.
Harry Kane entered the tournament averaging a goal every 66 minutes for Bayern Munich and quickly established himself as a Golden Boot contender, netting twice against Croatia before adding four more during England’s run.
Jude Bellingham, returning from a shoulder operation that had limited him at Real Madrid, matched Kane’s tally of six goals and stands alongside him as a joint top scorer heading into the third-place play-off.
Both players could clinch the Golden Boot outright if they better or equal the current joint-leading tally of eight goals, held by Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi.
Beyond the goals, England’s run to the last four represents the fourth time they have reached a semi-final or final in the past five major tournaments, an extraordinary shift from the years when quarter-finals represented their ceiling.
Thomas Tuchel’s side also demonstrated considerable adaptability across the tournament’s challenging conditions, coping with humidity and soaring temperatures in Miami and overcoming the altitude of Mexico’s Azteca stadium in a round of 16 tie against the co-hosts.
Djed Spence, selected despite playing for relegation-threatened Tottenham, emerged as a surprise standout, earning widespread praise for his defensive displays and drawing particular adulation after the semi-final loss to Argentina.
Tuchel’s decision to include Spence over higher-profile names like Trent Alexander-Arnold and Harry Maguire looks to have been vindicated, suggesting the manager is willing to make brave calls based on form and fit rather than reputation.
Looking further ahead, Liverpool youngster Rio Ngumoha impressed as a man of the match on his debut in a warm-up match against New Zealand at just 17 years old, while Arsenal’s Max Dowman became the youngest goalscorer and youngest-ever winner in Premier League history during the 2025-26 season.
Critically, tournament figures such as Bellingham, Elliot Anderson, Jarell Quansah, Morgan Rogers and James Trafford are all still just 23 years old, meaning they will be at statistically the prime age of 27 when the next World Cup arrives.
England face France in the third-place play-off on Saturday in Miami, live on the BBC, before attention turns to the Nations League starting on 24 September.
The 2028 European Championship, co-hosted by England, Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland, then offers the prospect of a major tournament on home soil with a squad that will only have grown in experience.
Many fans will dare to dream that everything England have built across this golden era of near-misses finally comes together when European football returns to British shores.
