In The Mixer’s World Cup special

Everything you need to know about the World Cup – England updates, the games to watch and stories you missed – in five minutes, at 1pm, every day.

NEW YORK (AP) — The United States’ 250th birthday carries ambitions to galvanize Americans behind nationwide community-service drives and patriotic brand launches. Well-known U.S. nonprofits hope to inspire a record-setting level of volunteerism, while major companies such as Walmart and Coca-Cola are sponsoring tributes and selling limited-edition merchandise.

But the private sector’s unifying ambitions have been met with a mixed response, complicated by an uneasy national mood. Fewer Americans see their country as exceptional compared to 10 years ago, according to a recent survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, part of a broad decline in patriotic sentiment. Views of the American flag — a prominent feature of semiquincentennial celebrations — are divided by politics, age and race.

Rival events, planned by two different commissions, are adding to the conflicted feelings. Late last year President Donald Trump created Freedom 250, a nonprofit led by his allies, to organize alternative programming to America250, the official nonpartisan group formed in 2016 by Congress.

“The American dream is alive again. That’s something that nobody thought they’d be saying when you went through that last four years of incompetence,” Trump said at his June 24 campaign-style rally kicking off Freedom 250’s Great American State Fair, which lost nearly all scheduled musical performers over concerns the event had grown too politically charged.

Philanthropy sees local impact as key to engagement

The tone contrasted with one of America250’s tentpoles: America Gives. The initiative aims to strengthen volunteering habits by encouraging Americans to serve with its nonprofit partners and log those hours in an online tracker.

Salvation Army USA National Commander Merle Heatwole lamented that a number of potential participants have assigned political agendas to the nonpartisan program, which is co-sponsored by his Christian aid nonprofit. Still, he celebrated that thousands of churches supported their “Good Neighbor Day” of volunteering in May.

“Some people have shied away because they’re not sure whether this is a nonpartisan effort, or whether it’s connected to the Trump administration versus the Democratic administrations,” Heatwole said. “That, I think, has hindered it slightly. But I think that overall, people are excited about having an opportunity to get involved.”

The America Gives tracker counted ”just over 38 million hours volunteered entering the holiday weekend.” It’s unclear how many hours would set the single-year record. Americans recorded 4.99 billion service hours in a one-year span from 2022-2023, according to an AmeriCorps analysis of Census Bureau data.

Most nonprofits aren’t leveraging semiquincentennial campaigns, one consultant found. Jayne Cravens, whose 30-year nonprofit career has included volunteer coordination, said nonprofits lack the infrastructure to provide meaningful service experiences. That’s especially so after the Trump administration gutted AmeriCorps, the federal agency for national service and volunteerism, in 2025. Nonprofits scrambled to replace lost workers and funding.

Audra Watson, who leads youth civic programs at the nonprofit C&S, is spearheading a three-year effort to increase civic engagement among 20 million people ages 14 to 24.

She finds most young people are getting engaged through appeals outside of the 250th. While the milestone has sparked “some excitement for some young people,” she said, those participants are “hand-raisers” already “deeply excited about history.”

The more they encourage young people to consider local impact, where she said they hold the most influence, the more she finds they depart from partisanship.

“For some young people, the 250th is their thing,” she said. “But for many, many more of them this is about really taking that energy and catalyzing that energy around issues of their community.”

Dueling logos muddle the market

Marketing consultants say brands have to tread carefully, given a divided nation and shrinking national pride.

Further jumbling 250th celebration advertising, marketing executives noted, have been the two competing logos. The America250 emblem depicts a bold red, white and blue continuous ribbon that spells out “250.” The Freedom 250 design features the words “Freedom 250” written in a classic serif font, placed inside a circular arrangement of 13 stars, a nod to the original U.S. flag

“Once you have two competing logos, it’s confusing,” said Allen Adamson, co-founder of marketing consultancy Metaforce.

Walmart, an America250 founding sponsor, is sponsoring a mobile recording studio that is collecting oral histories across the country. The Library of Congress will archive a selection of stories, the company said.

Coca‑Cola launched “Paint the Nation,” a large-scale public art initiative resulting in dozens of murals created with local artists. The company said each mural will reflect local culture and community pride, creating a “visual legacy that extends beyond the anniversary year.” Commemorative mini-cans are also being issued for all 50 states plus Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C.

Aaron Hilton of Suffolk, Virginia says he’s seen lots of paper plates, cups and T-shirts with the America 250 reference. He’s not interested, blaming his lack of enthusiasm on the Trump administration.

“I’ll end up getting the Coke because I do drink Coke, but otherwise I really don’t want to buy anything like that,” said Hilton, 36. “I’m not feeling really patriotic about this.”

Darrell Brown, 60, of Alexander, Arkansas, has already bought commemorative T-shirts and flags. Every year, he decorates his lawn with a 7-foot inflatable Uncle Sam. This year, he’s added more American flags than usual to commemorate the milestone.

Brown saye he’s been sticking to merchandise with America250 references. He finds it politically divisive to have two logos.

“I don’t believe this should be a political issue,” he said. “I think it should be just about celebrating the country, regardless if you’re a Democrat or Republican.”

Grassroots programming defined commemoration 50 years ago

Future generations might be pleasantly surprised to see all their communities accomplished under the milestone’s banner, according to M.J. Rymsza-Pawlowska, a cultural historian who wrote a book about the 1976 bicentennial.

She recalled that the Vietnam war and Watergate still felt fresh during those celebrations. President Richard Nixon initially replaced Lyndon B. Johnson’s bipartisan planning commission with one composed of political appointees interested in a top-down celebration of American supremacy.

But Nixon scrapped those plans in place of federal funding for grassroots programming, Rymsza-Pawlowska said, which grew into forms of civic engagement still popular today. Environmental pick-ups and get-out-the-vote work were common forms of bicentennial volunteerism.

Private funders still support such efforts, though not at the scale possible with government backing. State humanities councils launched a “By the People” campaign to fund community-driven programs exploring the nation’s culture and imagining its future. Her Washington, D.C. chapter created an oral history project that promises “an intimate and complex portrait of what it means to call the nation’s capital home” today.

“We don’t really know what the ultimate legacy of the 250th will be,” Rymsza-Pawlowska said. “A commemoration is just an opportunity to do a thing that you were already doing but have an occasion for it. And possibly get some money for it.”

___

Associated Press coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. For all of AP’s philanthropy coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy.

A 22-year-old woman has died following a skydiving incident near Langar Airfield in Nottinghamshire

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A 22-year-old woman has lost her life following a skydiving incident near Langar Airfield.

Emergency services were called to the scene at 12.13pm on Sunday after reports of an incident involving a skydiver.

The woman was discovered in a neighbouring field and was pronounced dead at the scene. Her next of kin have been notified and will be supported by specially trained officers.

No further injuries were reported and a file will now be prepared for the coroner.

Detective Inspector Rachel Mayfield, of Nottinghamshire Police, confirmed that officers are working alongside partner agencies to establish the full circumstances surrounding the incident, reports Nottinghamshire Live.

She said: “This was a tragic incident, and we are working with partners to understand what happened.

“As our investigations continue at the scene, our thoughts are with the woman’s family and everyone else who has been affected by this incident.”

Anyone with information has been urged to contact police on 101, quoting incident 306 of July 5, 2026.

A spokesperson for Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service confirmed that crews from Bingham Fire Station were called to assist at around 12.30pm.

They said: “Bingham Fire Station were called to an incident at Langar Airfield at 12.30pm to assist police.

“We remain on scene however looks like we will be leaving shortly.”

The airfield remained the focus of emergency activity for a number of hours while enquiries continued.

In the great football temple of the Azteca, in the midst of the chaotic, untrammelled fervour that football unleashes here, battered by the din, electrical storms raging around the stadium, reduced to 10 men for 40 minutes, up at an altitude of 7220ft, in the thin air that makes your heart race and your lungs gasp, England defied it all.

When the final whistle went, they breathed again. All England breathed again. All England, up in the middle of the night in packed pubs in cities and villages across the country, in front rooms and basements, the intrepid few who sat high in the stands here, all breathed again.

And then the England players celebrated. And they deserved to celebrate because this 3-2 victory was an epic, a classic, a game for the ages that will be remembered as another landmark in the storied history of this arena. It was also, by a distance, England’s greatest victory at a World Cup since 1966.

England captain Harry Kane, with one goal, and Jude Bellingham with two, stood mighty and tall once more for England as they have done throughout this World Cup. 

A sending off is usually a harbinger of doom for England teams at World Cups but when Jarell Quansah was shown a straight red early in the second half, England refused to yield.

For most who witnessed this, it was the greatest England performance they would have ever seen in the greatest stadium they have ever visited. They will play Norway in the quarter-finals in Miami on Saturday evening. It is tempting to say that if England can win here at the Azteca in these circumstances, they can win anywhere.

Harry Kane scored a decisive penalty kick as England dug in with 10 men to edge it 3-2

Thomas Tuchel’s side had backs to the wall but pulled off a generational win at the Azteca

Thomas Tuchel, Kane, Bellingham and the rest of the squad had arrived here late on Friday night knowing that this country had been a graveyard of England’s ambitions at two World Cups already and that the only precedents for visits here involved controversy and failure.

It was here that their defence of the World Cup they won in 1966 ended when they surrendered a two-goal lead and fell to defeat to West Germany in Leon in 1970. It was here, in the Azteca, where they fell to the genius and the duplicity of Diego Maradona and his Hand of God goal in 1986.

And it was here where many expected them to succumb once more. Mexico had only lost twice here in 89 competitive fixtures since the stadium opened 60 years ago. The arena has become legend, an outlier of passion and fury and tradition at a tournament where many matches are being played in manicured monuments to wealth and sophistication.

There was altitude, there was heat, there was kick-off time chaos, there was an hour’s delay, there were fans letting off a fusillade of fireworks outside their team hotel in the middle of the night and there was an opponent that had not conceded a single goal in the three matches it had already played here and had never lost a World Cup game here. England defeated it all.

And so in the magnificent cathedral of the game, which has been blessed by staging Brazil’s beautiful demolition of Italy in the 1970 World Cup final and Maradona’s greatest triumph when Argentina defeated West Germany in the 1986 final, England exorcised the ghosts of what happened here 40 years ago and created their own special moment in the Azteca.

The hour’s delay to the start because of thunderstorms had worked the crowd into an even greater frenzy than usual. ‘Si, si, si,’ they yelled over and over again in the seconds before kick-off. The expectation was that Mexico would hurl themselves at England in the first 20 minutes.

Tuchel had chosen Bukayo Saka and Anthony Gorden to start wide but all thoughts of team selection were lost in the mayhem of the opening 50 seconds when Declan Rice was shown a yellow card when he tried to clear the ball but connected with the face of Luis Romo instead. It was a bad start.

The crowd was at fever pitch and their team fed off it. They passed the ball around beautifully in the early moments. ‘Ole’, the crowd chanted with every pass, as if they were taunting a maddened bull. Kane lost his cool when he tried to retrieve the ball after a Mexico foul. The madness of the Azteca was getting to everyone.

England were clinging on until 10 minutes before half-time. Then a different kind of bedlam was unleashed and Bellingham unleashed it with two goals in 98 seconds. First, Rice rampaged down the right and played the ball to Saka. 

Saka beat his man and crossed to the back post where Bellingham met it with a diving header a few yards out.

Mexico were devastated in the end having more than played their part in this 50-50 contest

The stadium was stunned but worse was to come for Mexico. 

Straight from the kick-off, England ran at Mexico again. Gordon, who had had an excellent half, played the ball to Kane and Kane pulled it back into the box where Bellingham made absolutely sure he got to it first and forced it over the line.

England were in heaven. It felt briefly as if the game was won. It wasn’t. Two minutes before half-time, England failed to clear a Mexico free kick and Julian Quinones reacted fastest to the loose ball. He rifled it high into the roof of the England net. The Azteca was alive again, even louder and more impassioned than before.

England were besieged now. Jimenez dragged a good chance wide, then forced a fine save out of Pickford with a looping header. 

Then Cesar Montes found the ball at his feet from a Mexico corner and seemed certain to score until Bellingham denied him with a brilliant saving tackle.

Half-time seemed to have come at the right time for England. Nico O’Reilly hit the post from the edge of the area and England seemed to be in the ascendancy again. This game was far too tumultuous for something so simple.

Eight minutes after the break, Jarell Quansah launched himself into a sliding tackle on Jesus Gallardo. He got the ball but also caught Gallardo high on the shin. Gallardo was left in a heap but referee Alireza Faghani waved play on. 

The Mexico bench was enraged. There was a scuffle between the substitutes and then the referee was called to review the decision. He showed Quansah a red card.

Jarell Quansah was shown a straight red card for this challenge on Mexico’s Jesus Gallardo

Quansah was distraught and it meant that England had to go backs-to-the-wall defending

By the end there was jubilation and relief as Declan Rice (right) and Co were able to celebrate

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There was still no time to breathe. Five minutes later, Gordon took the ball around Raul Rangel and Rangel brought him down. It was an obvious penalty. Kane took it and hammered it into the corner of the net. It was his sixth goal of this World Cup.

Then, another twist, with 20 minutes left. Kane tried to clear a loose ball in the penalty area but Erick Gutierrez got there just ahead of him and Kane kicked the back of his leg instead of the ball. The referee, once more, went to the monitor, and awarded a penalty. Jimenez took it and even though Pickford tried to change direction, the ball sped past him.

The crowd smelled blood. They bayed for the equaliser. England clung on. John Stones, Dan Burn and Djed Spence came on. They all played like heroes at the back. Then the fourth official held up a board showing there would be 11 minutes of time added on.

Some doubted England could hold out. But this game was about 15 heroes. Fifteen men who stood up when many expected them to fail. Fifteen men who would not yield to everything the Azteca threw at them. Fifteen men who will travel to Miami this week to play for a place in the World Cup semi-finals.

In The Mixer’s World Cup special

Everything you need to know about the World Cup – England updates, the games to watch and stories you missed – in five minutes, at 1pm, every day.

England‘s Three Lions swept to victory on the crest of a Mexican wave today after a nerve-wracking roller coaster match which saw millions of fans pull an epic all-nighter.

They beat the World Cup hosts 3-2 at their home Azteca Stadium in Mexico City in one of the most thrilling games of modern times.

Thomas Tuchel‘s side’s heart-stopping triumph sets them up for a quarter-final showdown against Norway in Miami on Saturday.

As millions of Brits stayed up until gone 4am for the final whistle, employers are being warned of a ‘mass sickie’ – encouraged by none other than England’s golden boy Jude Bellingham.

After scoring two of his side’s three goals and collecting his player of the match award, he advised England fans to ‘have another shot and text your bosses to say you’re not coming in tomorrow’.

It came after companies were warned to expect a productivity hit as Britain prepares for the ‘mother of all Mondays’ recovering from the night before. 

But fans were adamant the headaches are worth it after Sunday’s last-16 clash nixed the demons from England’s last outing at the Azteca 40 years ago when Diego Maradona’s ‘Hand of God’ goal broke the nation’s hearts at the 1986 World Cup.

In the seething cauldron of the world’s greatest football arena, the roar from 62,000 fanatical Mexicans was as spine chilling as it was ear-splitting.

England’s Three Lions swept to victory on the crest of a Mexican wave today after a nerve-wracking roller coaster match which saw millions of fans pull an epic all-nighter

England football fans celebrate their team’s historic victory at a fan zone in Manchester in the early hours of Monday morning

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Megan Pickford and Kate Kane celebrate Jude Bellingham’s goal against Mexico 

England fans celebrate in central London after their side’s 3-2 victory against Mexico

But Bellingham‘s brace of goals within two minutes of each other set the game alight and sent the 18,000 England fans in the stadium wild.

Then the Mexicans went wild when their reply came a few minutes later to take the score to 2-1 and their fans launched their beer, cups and anything else to hand into the air.

In the second half, Jarell Quansah got a red card and became the first England player to be sent off at the World Cup since Wayne Rooney in 2006, taking England down to ten men. 

But then Harry Kane scored a penalty to make it 3-1, only to gift Mexico a penalty a few minutes later.

The Mexico team have played ten World Cup matches at their home stadium since 1970 and never lost any of them. They had not conceded a single goal this whole tournament – until Kane and Co came to town. Mexico hadn’t suffered three goals against them in a match since 1999.

The stadium is 2,240m above sea level and there was concern about the altitude, but Tuchel’s men seemed unaffected. As well as having the advantage of always playing at home, Mexico officials made sure every seat in the 80,824-capacity stadium last night was equipped with a Mexico flag to wave.

The explosive atmosphere of the match was heralded all afternoon by almighty claps of thunder. Before the game started, the stadium went into its lightning lockdown mode and kick-off was delayed by an hour.

England got off to a bad start in the first half with a yellow card in the opening minute for Arsenal’s Declan Rice after a high boot clipped Luis Romo on the head.

There were howls and whistles from the partisan Mexican crowd as Rice went in the book with the referee setting out his stall early.

England were happy to keep possession for the opening exchanges and although unlikely to silence the baying mob they were able to contain Mexico.

But there was a heart stopping moment 15 minutes in when Jordan Pickford had to make a lightning reaction save form a Raul Jimenez diving header.

England fans gather at BOXPARK in Wembley as they await kick-off, which was pushed back to 2am due to thunderstorms

Two England fans in Newcastle gear up in the early hours of Monday for the tie with Mexico

Bored and tired England fans at Ultra Warehouse Derby brave the early hours as they prepare to watch England play against Mexico 

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Fans celebrate following a screening of the FIFA World Cup match between England and Mexico at Boxpark Wembley

England fans pack into a fan zone in St James’ Park, Newcastle overnight on Sunday

It was sheer brilliance and more than made amends for his error at the near post against Democratic Republic of Congo in the previous match.

Barcelona bound Anthony Gordon who started the match also impressed after an indifferent couple of group games.

The hydration break was met wit the customary boos from England fans but the atmosphere was electrifying as every Mexican touch was greeted with oles and the Three Lions were jeered.

A brave and valiant attempt by the 5,000 England fans behind Pickford to break into a chant was quickly drowned out by the crowd.

But it was the men in white who were cheering when Jude Bellingham scored England’s first when Rice and Saka had combined to provide him with a diving header in the 36th minute.

It didn’t silence the crowd but it temporarily quietened them and England fans were in delirium when Bellingham scored again two minutes later.

However they were back in the game just before half-time when Julian Quinones converted a free kick – but the England defence were able to see out the first half.

After half-time, jubilant scenes broke out again at the 60-minute mark when Harry Kane scored England’s third goal of the match after Anthony Gordon won a penalty.

Fans in Boxpark Wembley and supporter zones across the UK cheered ecstatically and threw their pints in the air after determinedly staying up into the early hours.

It came after the crowd had been quietened minutes earlier when defender Jarell Quansah was sent off following a VAR check over a high tackle.

Jude Bellingham heads the ball past Mexico’s goalkeeper for England’s first score of the match

England captain Harry Kane celebrates with teammates after the final whistle at the Azteca Stadium

England manager Thomas Tuchel reacts after the final whistle secured the side’s place in the quarter-finals this weekend

England’s camp go wild as they celebrate a goal from Bellingham in the first half 

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Kate stunned in a white custom halter neck football shirt embossed with her husband Harry’s surname in red lettering 

England fans dressed up as lions pose for photos during the match against Mexico

The mood dipped again when Mexico reduced the deficit to 3-2 through a Raul Jimenez penalty after Harry Kane was adjudged to have committed a foul in the box, following a VAR check.

But after an agonising 11 minutes of extra time in the second half, the final whistle signalled England’s return to the quarter-finals of the tournament before fans in Mexico spontaneously broke out into a rendition of Sweet Caroline.

After collecting his player of the match award Bellingham advised England fans to ‘have another shot and text your bosses to say you’re not coming in tomorrow’.

Asked how he thinks supporters are celebrating back home, he added: ‘I can imagine it’s carnage. No matter where you’re from or what you do I can imagine everyone is together. 

‘That is the thing I dream of being a part of this England squad, bringing my country together, giving them nights like this that they will enjoy for many years to come. 

‘I am so proud of this team. What we have done tonight is spectacular.’

Elsewhere Kane had lost his voice by the time of his post-match interview, but revealed that celebrations for some players had been rather too enthusiastic – with Jordan Henderson requiring medical attention after injuring his arm. 

All-in-all the Three Lions put in a gutsy performance – including some breathtaking saves from goalkeeper Jordan Pickford after being reduced to ten men – to counter at times relentless pressure from the tournament’s co-hosts.

England’s Anthony Gordon is brought down by Mexico goalkeeper Raul Rangel, winning his side a penalty

Harry Kane scores a penalty for England in the 60th minute of his side’s last-16 match against Mexico

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Raul Jimenez of Mexico scores a penalty against England in the tie overnight on Sunday

England’s Harry Kane (left) celebrates with former player Peter Crouch following victory in the FIFA World Cup Round of 16 match

Jubilant fans celebrate England’s win against Mexico in central London in the early hours of Monday

England fans celebrate England’s win over Mexico in London’s Piccadilly Circus

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WAGS Kate Kane and Megan Pickford were in the stadium to celebrate with their husbands, after Kate earlier posed in a custom corset with her man’s name printed on the left side.

Megan, who is married to goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, threw her arms in the air in the first half as Jude Bellingham netted two goals in two minutes to put England comfortably in front – as she sported a white poncho to protect her from the rain.

Kate, the partner of Harry Kane who scored a penalty after the half-time break to bring England’s goal count to three, was also seen beaming in the row behind.

Moments after the final whistle, the Prince of Wales, who is the patron of the FA, sent his wellwishes to the team, writing on X: ‘Well done England! Bring on the quarter final!’

With the game wrapped up shortly after 4am, millions of Brits have pulled an exhausting all-nighter and are expected to be absent from work and school on Monday. 

Employers are bracing for a ‘mass sickie’ while some schools are allowing children to arrive as late as 11am without being marked as late. 

Speaking at a watch party in Wembley, northwest London, Lorcan Finn, from Devon, said he had already taken the day off work to stay up for the early-hours kick-off.

The 22-year-old engineer said: ‘I think it’s stupid not to take the day off, unless you work from home.’

Harry Becks, 27, from Ruislip, west London, also said there’s ‘no chance’ he will go to work on Monday, adding: ‘I already booked the day off.’

Matt, 27, from Richmond, south-west London, who was at the fan zone with his father Terry, 62, from Preston, is also taking annual leave on Monday.

His father Terry said: ‘I’m older, I do not work. I will wake up tomorrow at home, if I’m not dead!’

‘Hangover Monday’ could cost the economy millions as workers either fail to show up or spend today being unproductive. 

Remote workers pulling an all-nighter joked they will just be moving their mouse at work on Monday.

Experts have warned of the dangers of driving or doing physical work while exhausted.

Dr Sophie Bostock, from the sleepscientist.com, said: ‘If you’ve been awake for 24 hours and you’re planning to just ‘push through’, your reaction time slows by over 50 per cent.’

Six million staff – almost one in five employees – have taken annual leave, three times more than usual, industry sources said.

In Mexico City, hundreds of thousands of fans are expected to take to the streets following the last-16 showdown.

Police deployed 7,500 officers to the Azteca Stadium and 6,000 more to the city centre in the biggest operation ever seen for an England football match.

It comes after a million people crowded around the Angel of Independence statue in the city centre after Mexico’s match against Ecuador last week, with four people dying in the crush.

By OLIVER TODD, DIGITAL HEAD OF SPORT and BOBBY MANZI, FOOTBALL REPORTER

Published: 04:19 BST, 6 July 2026 | Updated: 05:31 BST, 6 July 2026

Harry Kane delighted England fans with a squeaky post-match interview after the epic 3-2 win over Mexico at the World Cup – before revealing a bizarre injury to Jordan Henderson in the celebrations.

Kane had clearly lost his voice, singing Wonderwall in front of the England fans at one end of the Azteca stadium, and struggled to get his words out in a pitchside interview immediately after. 

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‘It was a crazy game,’ Kane told the BBC. ‘We had to fight and we had to find something. I’ve just been singing, I can’t really talk. The occasion, the team, everything against us, we found a way.

‘It was one of those days where the ref gave a lot against us. In the end it didn’t matter. I’m happy. 

‘Incredible, unbelievable support. [I’m] speechless! 

But more worryingly, Henderson – a non-playing substitute – collapsed on the Azteca pitch and required medical attention for an injury to his arm. 

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Jordan Henderson (in purple) was taken off the pitch on a stretcher at the Azteca after England’s win

Kane, Henderson (far right) and the rest of England’s players celebrate their Azteca win

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Should player celebrations be better regulated to prevent bizarre injuries like Henderson¿s?

The 36-year-old fell flat on his face when climbing over the advertising hoardings and back onto the pitch after celebrating with the England fans. 

Kane said: ‘Jordan just fell over there, I think he’s OK, just something to do with his arm.’ 

But England boss Thomas Tuchel later confirmed his injury was more severe than Kane thought. 

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‘Not good, not good,’ Tuchel said. ‘It looks really bad, he’s injured his wrist.’

But Henderson had to leave the pitch on a stretcher and was seen in a heap behind the goal.

Jude Bellingham added: ‘He’s in a bit of bother, but our medical team have got everything under control. 

‘It’s probably best not to say too much when I don’t really know what was going on. But everyone was there to support him, and even that was a beautiful thing to see.’

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As Jordan Pickford punched away the umpteenth Mexican cross and the Australian official blew the final whistle, Jude Bellingham collapsed in victory inside the England penalty area. Battered, bruised, exhausted. Sometimes, the Real Madrid midfielder’s histrionics are a tad questionable. Not this time.

The magnitude of the stage – the World Cup’s most iconic stadium – was inescapable. England were public enemy No 1, facing the co-hosts in their near-impenetrable fortress. And at an altitude of 7,200m, Bellingham did not catch his breath: he was simply breathless.

Nobody rose to the occasion more than England’s talismanic attacking midfielder on Sunday night. And it wasn’t just his goals, which were brilliant by the way. It was his last-ditch tackles, his phenomenal hold-up play, his output off the ball, his motivational barks at his teammate, his wondrous quick feet.

And as the big screens cut to Bellingham amidst the downpour of the pre-match warm-up and he looked up, a wipe of his brow perhaps foreshadowed the 90 minutes ahead. His inference was simple: this was to be his stage.

Whether it be a debut in El Clásico, a Champions League final or major international tournaments, nothing brings the best out of Bellingham – still only 23 years of age, the youngest England player ever to reach 50 caps – like the grandest of arenas.

The cauldron of the Azteca, with thunder in the skies and on the terraces, felt like a momentous cultural occasion as opposed to a football match. The one-hour delay only added to the spectacle. And the order of the day was ear-splittingly simple: rousing cheers for the hosts, deafening jeers for the visitors.

And it takes some recalling to remember that Mexico were actually well on top after half an hour. Yet one Declan Rice surge down the pitch, one chipped Bukayo Saka cross and one diving Bellingham header set England on their way.

Simple enough, on paper. Yet off-beat, Bellingham’s slightest of faints to go near post before shifting to the back post, leaving forlorn Mexican marker Roberto Alvarado for dead, made the goal. Without it, Saka’s cross finds a deserted patch of grass.

Ninety-eight seconds later, Bellingham had his second. England won the ball from kick-off, Bellingham fed Harry Kane who reversed with pinpoint accuracy for Bellingham who, in his midfield battle with Mexico’s dogged Erik Lira, beat him to the punch again here.

There were other solo highlights. A goal-saving challenge on the stroke of half-time at the back post. A dazzling run, beating two men for dead in midfield on-the-turn before taking it – as the best sometimes do – a step too far. An audacious attempt from the halfway line which, though it looked unthreatening, had Mexico goalkeeper Raul Rangel backpedalling.

Even a one-minute retention of the ball in the corner in stoppage time triggered the customary sight of Bellingham geeing up the home supporters; a gesture which appears to be his favourite thing to do in this tournament.

It was a sumptuous performance, laced with supreme skill and unwavering determination. To think Thomas Tuchel dropped him from the squad eight months ago is now, well, unthinkable. As England prepared to run towards their fans in celebration at full-time, Bellingham raced to Tuchel and the pair exchanged the biggest of bear hugs, memories of maternal repulsiveness a distant memory.

The German boss has England’s star performers, Bellingham and Kane, the goalscorers again, firing bullseyes and desperate to one-up the other. It is the pairing which has England fans, drunk with joy in Mexico City and euphoric on caffeine back home, dreaming that perhaps something special is in the offing this summer.

“I was born in 1939 in Redcar but we got bombed out of there and moved in about 1942 to 27, Auckland Terrace, and I remember we were playing out in Garbutt Street and we heard a hell of a racket: there was this plane going up Auckland Terrace, so low he knocked a couple of chimney pots off.”

Last weekend in Shildon, a plaque was unveiled dedicated to the seven airmen who were killed on May 31, 1944, when their Short Stirling bomber crashed out of low cloud into fields where the Jubilee estate is today.

READ FIRST: SEVEN AIRMEN WERE KILLED WHEN THEIR BOMBER GOT CAUGHT IN A THUNDERHEAD

The plaque to the seven airmen who were killed in Shildon (Image: Andy Futers)

But Kenneth’s crash is different.

It took place on January 25, 1946, and involved a de Havilland Mosquito on a training flight from RAF Middleton St George.

“He must have come from Redworth way,” says Kenneth. “He went over the Hippodrome and he was heading up the bank but struggling to keep the plane up.

“He went over the top and disappeared, and then we heard a hell of a bang and saw a cloud of smoke.”

The Northern Echo the following day said: “It appears that the plane had been heard circling round in dense fog, apparently looking for a landing ground. It passed low over the houses and seemed to turn at South Church.

“On its return, it crashed through a tall hawthorn hedge, somersaulted and disintegrated.”

A de Havilland Mosquito, like the one which Kenneth saw crash near Shildon (Image: PA)

It broke up in fields to the west of Adelaide Bank, which runs from Shildon down into South Church.

“We ran up the bank to the reservoir and got 50 to 100 yards from the crash scene; one wing was sticking up in the air,” says Kenneth, who now lives in West Cornforth. “We were turned away when a big green van with a red cross on the side turned up.”

The two airmen, the pilot and his navigator, were killed outright. The Echo said that two women, Miss Lanchester and Mrs Newton of Adelaide Terrace, “were first on the scene and they found the bodies”. A detachment of soldiers carried them off to Bishop Auckland hospital mortuary.

“I worked as a farmer for 65 years, and I’ve worked on that farm,” says Kenneth. “Every time I ploughed that field, I thought of those lads. The hedgeback that they hit is still damaged, as is the one where they found a body.

“I was once asked to plant up those hedges but something stopped me from doing it in those two places – it is a war grave to me.”

The plaque to the seven airmen who were killed in Shildon (Image: Andy Futers)

• Memories 789 told of the crash on May 31, 1944, when seven airmen from RAF Wigsley in Nottinghamshire got caught in a thunderhead cloud as they approached Shildon. The pilot dived so steeply to escape that the tail broke off, leaving a trail of debris a mile long until the plane came to earth where Weardale and Teesdale walks are now on the Jubilee estate. The plaque, unveiled in the community centre, has been erected by local historians led by Alan Ellwood and commemorates the men’s sacrifice.

The England midfielder had been celebrating with his teammates moments earlier

England star Jordan Henderson was taken away on a stretcher after hurting his arm during his side’s celebrations in the aftermath of their win over Mexico.

Thomas Tuchel’s side defeated the tournament co-hosts 3-2 in a hugely dramatic last-16 clash at the Azteca Stadium, with goals from Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane enough to see them seal victory. They will now face Norway in the quarter-finals next week.

After securing the win, the entire England squad celebrated with the travelling fans, belting out Oasis classic ‘Wonderwall’, which they have adopted as their anthem for the tournament.

However, during the celebrations, it appears that Henderson suffered a worrying injury, with the Brentford midfielder caught on the BBC coverage lying seemingly in agony on the ground on the other side of the advertising hoardings.

His teammates were seen signalling for medics to come to his aid and, according to reports from the stadium, Henderson promptly received medical treatment at the side of the pitch.

The players appeared to form a huddle around the veteran midfielder, who was then taken away on a stretcher.