On Wednesday, England fans around the world united as they hoped to watch their team make history as they plated in the World Cup semi-finals against Croatia.
But after the Three Lions came crashing out of the high-profile tournament following a 2-1 loss – and their first World Cup semi-final since 1990 – a host of celebrities took to their social media accounts to express their disappointment at the result.
Holly Willoughby reacted by sharing a shot of her son Chester holding his head in anguish as he watched the players commiserate over their crushing loss, while Kate Hudson, whose sons have English fathers, shared tips on dealing with the sadness.
This Morning presenter Holly, who has three children with her husband Dan Baldwin, took to Instagram shortly after the result to share the shot of her youngest offspring, three, sitting before their TV screen as he looked at the mourning squad.
Starting off her caption with an emoji of a broken heart, the TV personality wrote: ‘For so many reasons he will never forget his 1st World Cup.’
Her pal Fearne Cotton lamented not only the loss but the impending UK visit of US President Donald Trump, sharing an image, which read: ‘We are out of the World Cup, the sun has gone in. And Trump is coming to town. Shall we all just get the gin?’
Oscar-nominated actress Kate, who is expecting a baby with her boyfriend Danny Fujikawa, shared a snap of her seven-year-old son Bingham, whose father is Cambridge-born Muse rocker Matt Bellamy, watching the game.
As she got swept up in the international enthusiasm for the England team, she captioned the image: ‘My little British citizen. Go England!’
Once it was confirmed that England was knocked out of the World Cup, she took the unusual step of sharing a six-point picture set offering tips on how to deal with sporting disappointment.
Former Spice Girls star Geri Horner took to Instagram to share a shot of Saint George’s flag, while simply stating that she was ‘proud’ of the history making squad.
Actress Isla Fisher, married to British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen uploaded an image of herself with England flags drawn on each of her cheeks as she pulled a sad face, alongside the words: ‘I knew I should have watched the tennis instead.’
Under her snap, the Oman-born, Australia-raised Bridesmaids star wrote: ‘It’s not coming home and I’m gutted.’
Singer Ellie Goulding showed her English pride as she posed in a pristine white Three Lions top, captioning the image: ‘We’re feeling positive for the next chapter.’
Meanwhile, TV personality Denise van Outen shared a video of herself watching the game in her garden with her partner Eddie Boxshall, who dramatically dropped and rolled around on the lawn on accepting the game wasn’t going England’s way.
Vicky Pattison wrote on Twitter: ‘England, you should be proud of yourselves. You played with pride, dignity & respect. I won’t tarnish your performance by speaking ill of your opponents and their less than sportsmanship behaviour.
‘However I will say this. you lads will bring it home at some point. #heroes #2022.’
