Ukraine defeats France and wins World Cup bronze for first time in history

In Tashkent, the Humo Arena held a match for third place in the 2024 World Futsal Championship, with Ukraine and France competing for bronze medals. The Ukrainian team won the match by a score of 7-1. Source: Champion, a sports news platform within Ukrainska Pravda's holding company

Details: Mykola Mykytiuk, 28, was hurt in the third minute after engaging in a showdown with his opponent. Mykytiuk was unable to complete the game due to the major damage sustained.

Despite the loss of one of the leaders, Oleksandr Kosenko's team controlled the game throughout the first half and went into halftime with a slim lead thanks to Ihor Cherniavskyi's goal, which came after a pass from Ihor Korsun. Zvarych extended the Ukrainian lead with a header in the second half of the match, following a pass from Semenchenko.

However, in a minute, the French scored a goal, returning uncertainty about the outcome of the match. However, the intrigue did not last long. The French were obliged to take risks, leaving the gate open, which the Ukrainians swiftly took advantage of: Zhuk scored twice and Abakshyn achieved a hat-trick.

For the first time in history, Ukraine won bronze in the World Cup.

Furthermore, this is the country's first medal in the World Championships in game sports.

The 2024 Futsal Cup Bronze final.

6 October Ukraine-France - 7-1

Goals: Cherniavskyi (11), Zvarych (22), Zhuk (27, 28), Abakshyn (30, 30, 33) - Saadaoui (23)

Ukraine competed in the Mundial bronze final for the second time in its history. In 1996, the Ukrainian squad, which included current head coach Oleksandr Kosenko, lost 2-3 to the Russian team in the match for third place. The last match of the 2024 World Cup will begin today, 6 October, at 18:00 Kyiv time, with Brazil and Argentina vying for the title of the world's strongest futsal team.

At the group stage, Oleksandr Kosenko's team overcame the current world vice-champions, the Argentines (1-7), before decisively defeating Angola (7-2) and Afghanistan (4-1), placing second among the four. In the playoffs, the Ukrainian team began with a 3-1 victory over the Netherlands in the quarter-finals and then advanced to the semifinals, eliminating the Venezuelan team (9-4). Kosenko's team suffered a defeat against five-time world winners Brazil (2-3) just before the final.

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