England finally buried the curse of Mick Jagger by defeating Norway 2-1 in the World Cup quarter-final on Saturday, with the Rolling Stones frontman watching from the stands in Miami. The victory secured England's place in the semi-finals against Argentina.
Jagger jinx lifted
Fans had feared the worst when Jagger appeared at the stadium to support the Three Lions, given his notorious history of jinxing teams he backs. Norway took a shock first-half lead from a mis-hit cross, but two goals from Jude Bellingham turned the match around in extra time.
The curse of Jagger dates back 16 years to the 2010 World Cup, when he cheered for the USA against Ghana, who won 2-1. In 2014, he tweeted support for England, who lost to Italy and Uruguay and were eliminated. He then backed Brazil, who suffered a 7-1 semi-final defeat to Germany, leading Brazilian media to call him 'the biggest jinx in history'. In 2018, he attended England's semi-final loss to Croatia.
Bellingham heroics
Jude Bellingham scored twice to secure the 2-1 victory after extra time. England will now face Argentina in Atlanta on Wednesday, with Lionel Messi likely to play against England for the first time in his career.
Fans took to social media to celebrate the end of the jinx. John Curtis wrote: 'The Jagger jinx is lifted. The world cup is ENGLAND’s to be lifted.' Garry Elderton said: 'None of that jinx stuff anymore - get in Sir Mick.' Another fan declared: 'The spell was broken. Congrats!'
Jagger's response
Before the match, Jagger told the Daily Star he was planning to fly to Miami despite his curse. He admitted to witnessing Arsenal lose the Champions League final to PSG but joked: 'You can’t blame me for Arsenal missing two penalties.' He cautiously added: 'They’ve got a good chance but I'll never say we're going all the way.'
ITV curse also broken
The victory also broke the so-called ITV curse. Since 1998, England had a 75% win ratio on BBC during World Cups (12 wins, one draw, three defeats) but only 18% on ITV (three wins, six draws, eight losses). However, ITV screened England's group wins over Croatia and Panama, plus the quarter-final triumph. The only match England failed to win—a 0-0 draw with Ghana—was shown by the BBC.
