Noel Gallagher has thrown his support behind Oasis‘ ‘Wonderwall’ becoming England’s 2026 World Cup anthem.
Fans of the national team sang along to the classic 1995 single following their 4-2 victory over Croatia last week, with England looking out from the pitch with a sense of awe.
The emotional moment saw players like Harry Kane express gratitude to the crowd, while others like Jude Bellingham and Anthony Gordon mouthed along to the lyrics.
During a new interview with The Sun, songwriter, guitarist and football fan Gallagher has backed calls to make ‘Wonderwall’ England’s World Cup anthem.
What a moment!
Jude Bellingham singing along to Wonderwall as the England fans serenade the team pic.twitter.com/A1oPoiZ9BH
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 17, 2026
“‘Wonderwall’ belongs to the people, and it was a magical moment between the people and the players,” he told the newspaper of the singalong at England’s previous match.
“Best of luck to everyone who’s made the trip out there.”
Recalling the moment, England defensive midfielder Declan Rice added: “On the pitch after the game and we were just connecting with the fans, and they were singing. That was special.
“Being in Dallas, singing ‘Wonderwall’. There’s nothing like that first time.”
Kane said: “That was one of my favourite ever moments in an England shirt, especially at a major tournament. It’s the emotional connection with the fans, we know how much it means to them.
“They see how much it means to us. We have that connection right now.”
Noel Gallagher. CREDIT: Big Brother RecordingsEach country in the World Cup submitted a playlist of songs to play in the stadium before and after games. Other than ‘Wonderwall’, England’s list features the likes of The Beatles‘ ‘Hey Jude’ and Neil Diamond’s ‘Sweet Caroline’ (per Metro).
England’s John Stones, who also plays for Gallagher’s beloved Manchester City, created a playlist with the Oasis guitarist in 2018. He revealed that Man City “always walk in” to his pick ‘Wonderwall’.
Gallagher responded: “Would you not prefer ‘Rock And Roll Star’? ‘Wonderwall”s a bit ‘end of the night, my bird’s left me’ and all that kind of thing. It doesn’t strike me as something you play before the derby.”
‘Wonderwall’ – from Oasis second album ‘(What’s The Story) Morning Glory?’ – reached Number Two on the official singles chart at the time of its release. The track has since become one of the biggest-selling tracks ever, despite never topping the charts.
In 2024, ‘Wonderwall’ was revealed to be the most-streamed song from the 1970s to the 1990s. It was previously named as the biggest-selling Britpop track of the ’90s. The single was, of course, on the setlist for Oasis’ huge Live ’25 reunion tour last year.
England’s next World Cup 2026 game takes place tonight (Tuesday June 23), when they go up against Ghana in the group stage. They’ll then play Panama on Saturday night (June 27).
Meanwhile, Gallagher has explained why he won’t be watching the Chris Martin-curated World Cup Final halftime show, which will feature performances from Madonna, Shakira and BTS.
The Oasis icon spoke about the event during an interview on talkSport, where he often makes guest appearances.
Elsewhere, Noel Gallagher has responded to the news of appearing on the Rich List, adding that he “still hasn’t seen” the upcoming Oasis documentary.
The post Noel Gallagher throws support behind ‘Wonderwall’ becoming England’s 2026 World Cup anthem: “It belongs to the people” appeared first on NME.
