Shocking BBC viewing figures reveal just how little England fans care about third place play-offs ahead of France match

BBC viewing figures have revealed how little England fans care about the third-place play-off match. The Three Lions will attempt to overcome their World Cup heartbreak against France tomorrow night. England fans are less likely to be tuning into the third-place play-off match Credit: Getty England will face France in the match after losing to Argentina Credit: Getty England had one foot in the final after Anthony Gordon‘s goal against Argentina in the semi-final in Atlanta. However, defensive tactics saw the South American fight their way back into the match. Sign up for the Football newsletter Thank you! Enzo Fernandez and Lautaro Martinez both scored in the final ten minutes of action to dump England out. As a result, the Three Lions will now take part in only their third-ever third-place play-off match. READ MORE ON THE WORLD CUP And it appears that there is not a lot of appetite for the fixture for English fans watching at home. England were last in a third-place match in 2018 when they were beaten 2-0 by Belgium. Only 9.8million fans tuned in to watch Sir Gareth Southgate‘s side lose at the Gazprom Arena in Russia. WORLD CUP 2026 FREE BETS AND SIGN UP OFFERS This was less than a THIRD of the number of viewers for the semi-final defeat to Croatia just three days prior. Most read in Sport A massive 30.9million had watched England crash out to Croatia in what was a similar outcome to the Argentina result. Kieran Tripper had opened the scoring with a brilliant free-kick before Ivan Perisic levelled and Mario Mandzukic netted the winner. The match does give the team the chance to achieve the nation’s second-best ever finish at the tournament. The only other time England has played in a third-place play-off game was in 1990. They were beaten 2-1 by host nation Italy with Salvatore Schillaci scoring a late penalty. The match between England and France in Miami is also struggling to attract fans to the stadium. At least 7,000 tickets were unsold for the fixture at 10am UK time today (July 17). England's third-place play-off history ENGLAND are preparing for their third ever play-off match at the World Cup after losing to Argentina. The Three Lions have played in the fixture twice before and have never won it. This gives the current crop of players a chance to do something never done before. Beating France would also mean that it would be England’s second-best World Cup finish EVER. Here is how England has fared in the past… England 1-2 Italy, 1990 Roberto Baggio – 72′ David Platt – 82′ Salvatore Schillaci – 87′ Pen England 0-2 Belgium, 2018 Thomas Meunier – 4′ Eden Hazard – 82′ England were beaten by Italy in their first third-place play-off match Credit: Getty England’s preparation for the match against the French has hit a snag after they faced delayed travel due to thunderstorms in Kansas. England’s semi-final opponents Argentina, have also faced travel problems ahead of the final on Sunday, Lionel Messi and co were left stranded in Atlanta due to thunderstorms which could impact their preparations ahead of facing Spain. 1 comment1