England expects, but do those expectations need grounding before lift‑off
11.06.26, 16:03 Updated 11.06.26, 19:47 3 Minute Read
Phil Martin
The waiting is almost over. By the time the sun dips across Mexico this afternoon, the World Cup will have begun in earnest, the noise and the colour returning in a way that only the World Cup can bring. For England, the campaign starts next Wednesday inside the air‑conditioned cocoon of AT&T Stadium in Dallas, but the sense of anticipation has already begun to swell. It always does.
That viral moment earlier in the week, of Thomas Tuchel addressing his players, invoking the weight of history stitched into the star on the shirt. Emotive, well judged, shared and reshared until it took on a life of its own. And then something familiar happened. Expectation did not just rise, it took off like a Florida space rocket.
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Phil Martin Author, journalist and veteran of eight major tournaments, and England top capper, with a background in sports writing, editing and publishing.