Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, has been widely mocked after sharing a picture of himself celebrating England's victory in their opening World Cup match. The Three Lions defeated Croatia 4-2 on Tuesday, sparking celebrations across the country.
Farage's Photo Sparks Mockery
Among those celebrating was Farage, who posted an image on X (formerly Twitter) after the final whistle. The photo showed him at a pub, wearing an England shirt and cheerfully drinking a pint, with the caption: "Proper job. @England." However, people quickly pointed out a glaring issue.
Mikey Smith, US Political Editor for the Mirror, reshared the photograph with the comment: "This...er. This taken tonight was it Nigel?" Another user remarked: "Incredible that you managed to be in the same pub with the flags in the exact same place with same people next to you from the Euros two years ago."
Social media users identified the photograph as having been taken nearly two years earlier, during England's Euro 2024 match against Denmark on June 20, 2024. One X user shared a series of photos from The Armfield Club in Blackpool, saying: "Nigel Farage is such a man of the people, that he arranged for everyone he was in the pub with to watch England play Denmark in 2024, to get back together in the same clothes to watch England play Croatia in the 2026 World Cup. What a guy!"
Social Media Reactions
In response to Farage's post, one user quipped: "It's taken you two years to drink that pint, you f****** lightweight." Another cheekily shared the identical image with the caption: "Farage celebrating the World Cup in 2030."
Mikey Smith added: "If Keir Starmer was caught using a picture of himself from two years ago to celebrate an England win, the backlash would probably be enough to finish him off."
Reform UK's Response
A Reform UK spokesperson confirmed: "Yes, the picture is from 2024. After a full day campaigning in Makerfield ahead of the by-election, Nigel watched the game nearby and celebrated England's first win (hopefully the first of many!)."
Voters in Makerfield, Greater Manchester, are heading to the polls today in a by-election to select their new MP.
The Match
The encounter at the AT&T Stadium in Dallas was level at halftime after Harry Kane's brace was matched by equalizers from Croatia's Martin Baturina and Petar Musa. However, the Three Lions surged ahead after the restart, with Jude Bellingham scoring just two minutes into the second half, before Marcus Rashford sealed the victory with an 85th-minute strike.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer hailed the win on X as a "fantastic result against Croatia and a performance to be proud of," adding: "On to the next one."
Wales failed to qualify for the 2026 World Cup after losing on penalties to Bosnia and Herzegovina in the play-off semi-finals in March.
