After exploring the mysterious World Cup curses, let’s turn our attention to some lesser-known trivia about participating teams. One pattern that stands out is how host nations often enjoy a significant home-field advantage and tend to perform well overall. Imagine a hypothetical penalty shootout between Croatia and England—who would come out on top? Looking at history, England wouldn’t have much reason to boast, having been eliminated in all three of their previous World Cup shootouts. Yet during the Round of 16 in this edition of the World Cup, England surprisingly broke their penalty jinx by

Ahead of the much-anticipated England vs Colombia clash, Jesse Lingard emphasized that the Three Lions must keep raising their game. “We’re playing exciting football and showcasing the talent of England’s younger generation. I want this to continue,” he said. Lingard expressed full confidence in his teammates, many of whom are young and relatively inexperienced. For some, this will be one of the biggest matches of their careers. Despite the controversy sparked when Gareth Southgate benched several starters in the final group match—a narrow 0-1 loss to Belgium—the England manager remained unfazed. He acknowledged that the