Alan Shearer has branded FIFA’s third-place play-off ‘meaningless’ ahead of England’s meeting with France this evening.
England’s defeat by Argentina in Wednesday’s semi-final ended their hopes of reaching Sunday’s World Cup final against Spain in New Jersey. Instead, the Three Lions will travel to Miami to face France, who lost 2-0 to Spain on Tuesday, as the beaten semi-finalists conclude their campaigns in underwhelming fashion.
Shearer has long been a critic of the fixture, which was first introduced in 1934 and has been played at every men’s World Cup since 1954.
The former Newcastle and England striker described it as ‘utter stupidity’ when England faced Belgium in the 2018 third-place play-off and has echoed the views of many supporters struggling to find enthusiasm for the match following the disappointment of England’s semi-final exit earlier in the week.
Should England beat France, it would represent their best World Cup finish since winning the tournament in 1966, although Shearer believes that is not a priority.
He told Betfair: ‘The third-placed play-off at the World Cup is ridiculous. FIFA go on so much about player welfare that they’re now out of the tournament, they can’t win, yet they’re making them travel to Miami and play in 37, 38-degree heat for a third-place play-off.
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.’
