England captain Harry Kane – who scored the winner in a scrappy 1-0 victory over New Zealand – was simply “Harry”. Man Utd midfielder Kobbie Mainoo was listed only as “Kobbie”.
England fans were left baffled when the team sheet was displayed for their opening friendly game in the US ….with a series of hilarious mistakes. England captain Harry Kane – who scored the winner in a scrappy 1-0 victory over New Zealand – was simply “Harry”. Man Utd midfielder Kobbie Mainoo was listed only as “Kobbie”. The game took place at Raymond James Stadium, home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFL.
It was the first England game played in front of a pirate ship which is at the venue and was seen by millions of fans watching the TV coverage back home. But supporters were perplexed when the Three Lions team list flashed on the big screen.
It was a bizarre line up as 10 of the 11 names were wrong. Seven of the names conflated two different England players: Marc O’Reilly, Marcus Stones, Jordan Guehi, Morgan Anderson, Ollie Kane, Djed Bellingham and Jarrell Rashford. Defender Ezri Konsa‘s name was also mixed up with John Stones in addition to incorrectly being spelled “Consa”.
England superfan Adam Price, in attendance at the game, posted a picture of the bizarre team sheet, captioned: “Sorry???” On the social media platform X, he asked: “What did the Americans do to our line up? This is not even AI.”
Superfan Garford Beck, 64, of London also spotted the line up as he attended the first match before he enjoys his 10th World Cup. He said: “They got all the names wrong which was very funny. I don’t know if there was a glitch in the system or it was simply that they did not know the names.
“It was very strange and the weirdest ground that I have ever been to in all the years following England. The pirate ship in the stands fires its cannons when the Bucaneers have a touch down in the NFL. That pirate ship has to be a first for a football match.”
The Mirror contacted the stadium for a comment. The England players were later reunited with the Arsenal contingent who had missed the opening days of training in Florida.
Arsenal captain Declan Rice was greeted by team mate Anthony Gordon as he arrived at Belgrove Hotel West Palm Beach. England captain Kane gave Bukayo Saka a big hug and Anthony Barry, assistant manager of England, also gave Rice a warm welcome.
Meanwhile, fans have been warned of the biggest crackdown ever at stadiums due to the FIFA Code of Conduct. Organisers have done a U-turn on the plastic water bottle ban due to the furore caused by the decision to not allow fans to take in water to combat the searing heat.
But other reusable bottles, cans, or any “other capped or closed receptacle” that could be thrown are prohibited in venues. Backpacks, purses and camera bags are also ‘generally prohibited,’ as are any ‘food, liquid or consumable items’.
Critics claim this is designed to ensure fans must pay sky-high prices for food and drinks inside the stadiums. Scotland fans have been left devastated as last-minute changes to travel permits that could prevent them from travelling to the World Cup.
UK citizens who want to go to the United States for up to 90 days without a visa need to apply to the country’s Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA). But dozens say their application status changed this week from “approved” to “travel not authorised”. They could lose thousands of pounds in travel costs.
Scott Braid, 43, from Kirkcaldy, was due to fly out to Boston on 12 June with his wife and two children. He applied for his ESTA and once it was approved he thought he was “good to go” and booked the “once-in-a-lifetime trip”.
He told the BBC: “Out of the blue on Tuesday, I got an email that said there’s been an update on your ESTA status.” He said it had moved from approved to pending and two hours later it changed to “travel not authorised”.
Scott said he is especially frustrated given that he had a previous ESTA that expired in 2024, and he travelled to America in 2023 with no issues. “Since I’ve done that ESTA there’s been absolutely no changes to my circumstances,” he said. “That’s the frustrating thing, not knowing why this has happened.”
He is encouraging his family to go ahead with the trip in the hope he will be able to join them part-way through after securing a visa appointment in Belfast this week. Acting assistant secretary of Homeland Security Lauren Bis said the tightening of granting ESTAs was because “the Trump administration is enforcing immigration laws”. “Under the Visa Waiver Program, all ESTA applications are continuously vetted against law enforcement and security databases,” she said. “Travellers must provide complete and truthful information, including all criminal history.” Bis added that “failure to disclose arrests or convictions constitutes misrepresentation” could lead to “ESTA denial, revocation, or a permanent bar from entering the United States.”
She said that an approved ESTA “does not guarantee admission”. Bis said: “Individuals ineligible for the VWP due to criminal convictions or misrepresentation must apply for a viss. CBP is unable to speculate on other travellers as CBP does not track who is travelling for FIFA games.”
Scotland kicks off its World Cup campaign on June 12. FIFA President Gianni Infantino again defended high ticket prices. Football Supporters Europe (FSE) and Euroconsumers have already lodged complaints with the European Commission.
They came after it emerged fans who are part of national-team travel clubs and loyalty schemes were given an initial cheapest ticket for the final of more than 3,500 Euros (£3,023). FIFA’s World Cup resale website advertised four tickets to the final for $2.3 million each. While FIFA does not control the asking price, it takes a 15% purchase fee from each buyer and a 15% resale fee from each seller. Infantino has previously pointed out the revenue from the flagship tournament supports the development of football globally. He told an event in LA: “If some people put tickets on the resale market for the final at $2 million dollars, number one it doesn’t mean the tickets cost $2m dollars and number two it doesn’t mean somebody will buy those tickets.”
