Noel Gallagher was asked to help with England World Cup song – but said no

Jun 10, 2026 - 21:30

Many musicians would jump at the chance to write a World Cup song, but Noel Gallagher is not one of them.

Three Lions has become the soundtrack for England at major tournaments since debuting in 1996, but Oasis icon Gallagher has revealed he turned down the chance to get involved in the fun.

Noel Gallagher, English singer and songwriter, is seen at the Premier League match between Manchester City and Arsenal — Noel Gallagher has tickets for this year’s World Cup final

With supporters counting down the days until the World Cup gets underway, the music icon joined talkSPORT Breakfast to look ahead to this summer’s headline event.

And while Gallagher might be a huge football fan when it comes to his beloved Manchester City, he has revealed his love of the beautiful game will only go so far at the North American showpiece.

For the first time in World Cup history, due to it being held in the US, there will be a Super Bowl-like half-time show during the final.

There will be no shortage of stars on show, with Madonna, Shakira and K-pop boy band BTS set to co-headline at the MetLife stadium.

It’s a decision which has proved unpopular among many fans, including Gallagher, who has revealed that while he will be attending the great spectacle, he won’t exactly be taking in the performance.

World Cup fever?

Discussing the planned half-time show on talkSPORT Breakfast, the music great said: “No [I don’t like the half-time show].

“I don’t like changes in football. I like these new rules about corners and time-wasting, that might be a good thing for the game, but I don’t like the razzmatazz of football.

“It’s been functioning perfectly for hundreds of years, now there’s going to be a half-time show…”

And just as Gallagher won’t be getting involved in the festivities in this year’s final, he also revealed he turned down the opportunity to perform on England’s 1998 World Cup song – ‘(How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World’.

He added: “I got asked to get involved in one, never been asked to write one.

Workers install the pitch at New York New Jersey Stadium (temporarily renamed from MetLife stadium) ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup — The MetLife Stadium will host the World Cup final on Sunday, July 19

Shakira has been confirmed as a performer at the World Cup Final Half-time show

“I think it was an England thing back in the ’90s, Ocean Colour Scene were involved, and Ian McCulloch, I’m not sure what the tune was, it got swamped by ‘Three Lions’ anyway.

“It’s not something I would write.”

Noel Gallagher’s World Cup predictions

After sharing his disapproval of the World Cup fanfare, Gallagher then gave his thoughts on how England will fare this summer.

And the music icon certainly didn’t fancy the Three Lions’ chances, who found it hard to look past a number of their rivals.

Gallagher said: “England will do what they always do, they’ll get to the quarter-finals and then they’ll play somebody of an equal standing or a bit better and the whole world will cave in.

“I don’t think England will win… I’m going to the final, so I hope that it’s a Brazil vs Argentina final.

Phil Foden and Cole Palmer won’t feature at this summer’s World Cup, despite both being central figures at Euro 2024

“Portugal are the outside bet and I don’t think you can look past France and Spain.

“England have been to a World Cup semi-final and two Euros finals, is that going to come round again?”

While Gallagher might not be the biggest England supporter, one team he is passionate about is Man City.

But even he sided with manager Thomas Tuchel‘s controversial decision to leave both of the Citizens’ star academy graduates Phil Foden and Cole Palmer at home this summer.

Gallagher added: “I like the manager, I think he’s great…no [he shouldn’t have taken Foden and Palmer], they didn’t deserve to go after two pretty bad seasons in a row for Phil.

“Him and Cole have not had great seasons, so I think Tuchel got that right.”