David Beckham joined in with the latest Oasis singalong as England’s travelling supporters belted out Wonderwall after the team’s World Cup quarter-final win over Norway in Miami. The former captain was among the fans facing the players behind the goal, a tradition that has followed all five of England’s wins across the US and Mexico.
“Cmon England cmon Wonderwall,” Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher tweeted on Sunday morning. His brother and bandmate Noel Gallagher, who wrote the song, told the Sun after the opening win in Dallas: “Wonderwall belongs to the people, and it was a magical moment between the people and the players.”
“England beat Norway in World Cup quarter-final as David Beckham and fans sang Oasis's Wonderwall; semi-final vs Argentina next.”
Captain Harry Kane said the first impromptu singalong was one of his “favourite ever moments in an England shirt” on the Lions’ Den podcast. Joe Hart, his former teammate and now BBC Sport pundit, said such “phenomenal” moments of unity allow players to “drop the mask, just for a few minutes, of being an elite professional”.
The number two hit, from Oasis’s 1995 album (What’s the Story) Morning Glory, re-entered the UK top 40 singles chart last week and shot from number 32 to 11 on Friday. Author and broadcaster PJ Harrison, who wrote the biography Gallagher: The Rise and Fall of Oasis, told BBC News he finds the adoption of pop songs by football fans fascinating, noting a 1960s tradition of fans simply singing pop hits of the day.
Meanwhile, Alfie Haaland appeared to aim a thinly veiled dig at the officials after Norway’s defeat, in which his son Erling was bizarrely subbed off despite his side needing a goal. The New Statesman called England’s performance “the best I’ve seen since 1966”, praising the energy and positive play and the brilliant crowds from all nations.
England will now face Argentina in the semi-final. Jude Bellingham proved England’s hero, launching the team into the last four. As one fan told BBC Sport, it’s Wonderwall that “resonates with being English”. The sound of Oasis may yet echo all the way to the final.