An England World Cup isn’t just football – it is money, politics and a nation’s bad habits
England are being asked to win the World Cup, yes, but the absurdity is that they are required to do so much more in the process, both commercially and politically, writes Ed Warner.
And so they’ve begun. Our boys, Tom’s 26. Their world is in motion, three lions on their shirts, out to erase 60 years of hurt.
Heavy, those shirts. Their future a missed penalty in a Pizza Hut advert, star character in an award-winning stage play, a knighthood, or all three perhaps. Footballing canvasses on which a nation projects its hopes and dreams; as yet unmarked cards on which we can all play cliche bingo over the coming month.
An England World Cup campaign is never just about football. It is about money, politics and a nation’s bad habit of dressing up its national team as something of greater nobility and significance than logic says it warrants. That is not a criticism of the players but of the machinery of which they constitute a part, albeit an essential one.
England is not merely a football team at a World Cup. Yes, it is obviously a commercial juggernaut, fuelled by a media which it returns revenue to in an ad industry’s perfect circle.
More insidiously, this attention economy allows the team to become an image amplifier for those seeking to borrow a little of its dazzle – and hoping in the process to blind a national audience to their true natures. That shirt and its three lions is expected to do much that is wrong, and far too much of it.
Those companies that have made a business of tracking player valuations across the globe reckon Thomas Tuchel’s 26 yeomen have a combined transfer value of around £1.25bn. That makes them the most valuable squad in the World Cup.
But I’d say – subject to the length of the remaining terms on each player’s contract – one might be able to squeeze to nearer £2bn if the England team makes a decent fist of this tournament.
No reason to feel sorry, then, for this squad of young men? After all, market value brings with it chunky signing-on fees, fat wages and juicy bonus potential. Easy, though, to fall into the trap of judging elite footballers differently to us mere mortals with our poor co-ordination and sluggish twitch muscles.
Witness the furore in France whipped up by zealots in response to Kylian Mbappe’s comments about the rise of the far right. Why shouldn’t he have a voice? But why too should we assume we can project our political hopes onto players whose talents warrant selection to represent the nation?
“People sometimes think that because we have money, because we’re famous, these kinds of problems don’t affect us. But they affect me.”
Kylian Mbappe
England is a nation that has been draped with St George’s Cross flags over the past couple of years, their meaning much disputed.
Whether springing from simple pride in nation, making a broad political statement or signalling an uglier anti-immigration message, it is surely wrong for the team that gathers at the FA’s St George’s Park to be hijacked through its unavoidable association with the flag.
Should any player come anywhere close to expressing Mbappe’s sentiments, you can be sure they would be front-page news for days, opinion sharply divided.
Meanwhile, the FA, broadcasters and sponsors all profit from the sheer scale of exposure the team engenders. All the while expecting the squad, those 26 young men, to answer in full, both on and off the pitch.
Every World Cup turns them into a proxy for national confidence. They are no longer judged as a football team in any ordinary sense, but as a referendum on the state of the country and a means to other people’s political ends.
“We should treat this like a big positive national moment where all of us are flying our flag.”
Wes Streeting, Labour MP and party leadership contender
Yes, Thomas Tuchel and his players are being asked to win a tournament, but the absurdity is that they are required to do so much more in the process, both commercially and politically.
The England team’s problem is not that it carries the burden of expectation, it is that too many people have built careers out of piling that expectation onto them.
The 26 may be able to handle the pressure on the pitch; the harder task is surviving the unwanted fellow-travellers off it.
Treat those two imposters just the same
The England squad’s collective value – whether £1.25bn, £2bn or anywhere in between – is a function of the riches of the Premier League, as well as the competition’s squad composition rules, which effectively place a premium on home-grown talent.
A young, relatively inexperienced English player commands a transfer fee that could only sensibly be paid by an English club.
While the FA is responsible for delivering a successful England team, it is almost entirely dependent on the Premier League for providing its component players. Trouble is that the demands of the EPL, week-in, week-out, don’t square with those of international football.
Should England come close but fall short once more in this tournament, expect renewed agonising about the more joined-up talent pathways through to international football in Germany, France and Spain. Where are our progressive midfielders capable of playing to a continental rhythm, the pool of strikers needed for international success etc etc?
In that scenario, don’t blame the current FA hierarchy for further years of hurt. It is their many predecessors over the past three decades who have ceded power to the Premier League and its member clubs.
Conversely, should England triumph, do congratulate the FA on its coach selection and logistical tournament efficiency, just don’t fall into the trap of drawing conclusions about the state of the nation, whether footballing ones or more broadly.
Meantime, bring on Ghana next Tuesday…
And hey, the Premier League fixtures for next season are published tomorrow!
And breathe…
World Cups – whether Fifa Men’s or ICC Women’s – the rest of the world continues turning regardless.
A day of County Championship cricket at Hove last Friday was a reminder of true sporting authenticity: simply presented, compelling cricket that deserves its place in the nation’s calendar but needs to be cherished.
The next round of matches starts tomorrow. Treat yourself.
Ed Warner is chair of GB Wheelchair Rugby and writes his sport column at sportinc.substack.com