Wayne Rooney hopes England can finally break their quarter-final hoodoo in major tournaments at Euro 2012 and claimed: “I don’t think any team will fancy playing us.”

FIFA chairman Sepp Blatter believes England are still sore about failing to secure the 2018 World Cup.

Ivory Coast coach Sven-Goran Eriksson heads into his first game at the helm tomorrow confident his team have the ability to progress from the World Cup’s ’group of death’ next month.

David Strettle and Mike Tindall could both be ruled out of World Cup contention today when England boss Brian Ashton assesses his casualty list.

FIFA have rejected a £1.6bn (€2.4bn) bid for the commercial rights to the 2010 and 2014 World Cup tournaments.