Ed Sheeran was among the thousands of England fans who attended the Three Lions’ Euro 2024 round of 16 match against Slovakia on Sunday.
The singer, who had already been seen in the stands during the 1-1 draw against Denmark, was in high spirits as he joined the fans for the crucial knockout match.
As millions back home prepared to cheer on England, Ed joined the team’s nearest and dearest in Gelsenkirchen to watch the tense match unfold, after what has so far been regarded as a lacklustre performance from the team.
And things got off to a lackluster start for England as they fell 1-0 to Slovakia after just 25 minutes, thanks to a goal from Ivan Schranz.
There were early clashes and a flurry of yellow cards at the Arena AufSchalke after manager Gareth Southgate made one change to his starting XI following Tuesday’s disappointing goalless draw with Slovenia.
Ed Sheeran was among thousands of England fans who attended the Three Lions’ Euro 2024 round of 16 match against Slovakia on Sunday
The singer, who had already been seen in the stands during the 1-1 draw against Denmark, was in high spirits as he joined the fans for the crucial knockout match.
Annie Kilner was one of the first WAGs to arrive in Dusseldorf after taking a private jet to Germany from Manchester this morning.
He has selected Manchester United’s Kobbie Mainoo over Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher as England bid for a place in the European Championship quarter-finals in Germany.
Fans have been flooding the German city today, calling for Southgate’s team to play without fear and silence the critics with a resounding victory, while in England, bars and fan parks are abuzz with excitement, with expats tuning in from tourist centers like Magaluf. in Spain.
Annie Kilner and Georgina Irwin were among the first WAGs to arrive at the Arena AufSchalke in Dusseldorf this afternoon as England take on Slovakia in a last-16 tie.
Kyle Walker and Aaron Ramsdale’s wives were always the “delightful mummies” as they entered the stadium with their babies in baby carriers as the babies got a taste of the “beautiful game.”
Model Georgina and Aaron welcomed Ronnie Ramsdale into the world last November, while Annie and Kyle welcomed their fourth child, Rezon, just two months ago.
When the mums arrived at the stadium ahead of the Three Lions’ clash with Slovakia, they were joined by England’s WAG of the tournament, who has been catching the eye of fans despite lacklustre performances.
Bukayo Saka’s 23-year-old girlfriend Tolami Benson has been dubbed a “low-key” WAG who doesn’t even follow her boyfriend on social media, but since the tournament began, the glamorous PR executive has been stealing the show with fans.
Benson has been dating the Arsenal star, seen as crucial to England’s success in this summer’s tournament, for almost four years but they are rarely seen together.
Fan favourite WAG Tolami Benson, the 23-year-old partner of Bukayo Saka, proudly showed off her boyfriend’s number 7 shirt as he arrived at the stadium.
Aaron Ramsdale’s partner Georgina Irwin also arrived at the stadium to support the Three Lions and took an adorable selfie of her son Ronnie.
Dani Dyer, Jarrod Bowen’s girlfriend, shared a drink and a joke with Bowen’s mother as they took their seats.
Ellie Alderson, Ollie Watkins’ girlfriend, took her seat before the 5pm GMT kick-off of the crucial match.
Conor Gallagher’s partner Aine May Kennedy took a seat in the stadium
It’s not just WAGs! Superstar Jude Bellingham’s parents Mark and Denise were also spotted in the stands.
At England’s opening match against Serbia, the glamorous Benson, who once worked on the shop floor at Harrods and has a degree from Birmingham City University, went firmly against WAG tradition and did not wear an England shirt to support her man.
The 23-year-old, who started a new job in May as a senior planning executive for Zenith, instead opted for a more cryptic nod to her soccer superstar boyfriend: She donned a custom-made leather biker jacket emblazoned with the number ’87’.
This was Saka’s shirt number for his great 2018/2019 season in the Arsenal team.
However, when pictured arriving for tonight’s crucial match, Benson broke her cool and donned a shirt emblazoned with Saka’s number seven in a loud and proud act of support for her teammate.
On Benson’s social media accounts, while there are plenty of references to Arsenal, including friendships with other Premier League WAGS such as Ben White’s wife Milly and Leandro Trossard’s wife Laura, there is no sign of the 22-year-old winger.
In Threads, Benson shares more realistic images, including the view of her train platform during her morning commute into central London.
For Annie Kilner, her show of support for Kyle Walker is perhaps the most meaningful of any WAG, after the 32-year-old model endured a tough few months.
She found out in December last year, when she was pregnant with her fourth child with Kyle, that her athlete husband had fathered a second child with Lauryn Goodman and that Walker had moved out of their home a few weeks later in January.
Instagram influencer Lauryn is mother to Kyle’s four-year-old son Kairo and ten-month-old daughter, known to family and friends as KK.
Lauryn became pregnant with Kairo when Kyle was on a break from his childhood sweetheart Annie in 2019, but they got him back and married in 2021.
MailOnline previously revealed that Annie decided not to fly as part of the official group of WAGs to the Euros.
Instead, she has hired a private jet, which she uses to fly in and out of each of England’s games in Germany with the four children she shares with Kyle.
The jet will cost Annie around £35,000 each way and she also plans to take a friend with her to help with the little ones – baby Rezon and sons Roman, 11, Riaan, seven, and Reign, five.
A source told the Mail: “Things have gotten very bad between Annie and Kyle, and she is only going to the Euros for the sake of the children. If there were no children involved, she wouldn’t go at all.”
“She doesn’t want to be part of the WAG group because she doesn’t feel like she has a proper relationship with Kyle and she doesn’t want to pretend that she does.
“She has told him what she feels and she is not prepared to be in Germany playing at being happy families with him.”
As the stadium began to fill, Luke Shaw’s partner Anouska Santos was seen searching for her seat.
Georgina Irwin, wife of Dean Henderson, and Aine May Kennedy, partner of Conor Gallagher, posed together before the match
Olivia Naylor, the girlfriend of defender John Stones, chatted with another spectator before the game.
Although Kilner is said to want to keep her distance from the ‘WAGs’, she was happy to be accompanied by other fellow England players at the match, including reality TV star and Jarrod Bowen’s teammate Dani Dyer.
Also seen in the stands were John Stones’ partner Olivia Naylor (who hopped aboard Annie’s private jet this week) and Conor Gallagher’s partner Aine May Kennedy.
England beat Serbia 1-0 in Gelsenkirchen in their first Group C match, thanks to a goal from Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham, followed by a 1-1 draw with Denmark and a goalless draw against Slovenia.
If Southgate’s team wins today’s match, which starts at 5pm, they will face Switzerland in the quarter-finals next Saturday at the same time.
Switzerland advanced yesterday by beating defending champions Italy 2-0, which previously beat England on penalties in the Euro 2020 final at Wembley.
Today’s clash in Gelsenkirchen comes 18 years since England was eliminated from the 2006 World Cup in the same Arena AufSchalke stadium, defeated on penalties in the quarterfinals against Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal.