Harry Kane scored twice in the first half to lead England to a 4-2 victory over Croatia in their World Cup 2026 opener at the Dallas Cowboys' roofed stadium in Texas, USA. A crowd of 70,000 watched a thrilling back-and-forth encounter.
Kane put England ahead in the 12th minute from a retaken penalty after Croatia goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic left his goal line early. Croatia equalized in the 36th minute through Martin Baturina, but Kane restored the lead six minutes later, heading home from Declan Rice's corner kick. In first-half stoppage time, Petar Musa leveled the score at 2-2 for Croatia.
Just two minutes into the second half, Jude Bellingham breached the Croatian defense to make it 3-2. Late in the match, substitute Marcus Rashford sealed the 4-2 victory for the Three Lions.
The match was a rematch of the 2018 World Cup semifinal, which Croatia won 2-1 after extra time. But with a younger squad under manager Thomas Tuchel, England started their North American campaign in impressive fashion.
Notably, Kane's double took his World Cup tally to 10 goals, equaling Gary Lineker's record as England's all-time top scorer in the tournament.
