England's FIFA World Cup campaign may have come to an end, but the country's love affair with Jude Bellingham is showing no signs of slowing down. From a packed lookalike contest in London to a resurgence of The Beatles' Hey Jude on music streaming platforms, the midfielder continues to dominate fan culture long after England's exit, proving his influence extends well beyond the pitch.
The lookalike moment
On Tuesday, dozens of fans wearing England No. 10 shirts packed Boxpark in London’s Shoreditch for a Jude Bellingham lookalike contest. Marcus Legemah, a 24-year-old UCL Master’s student, won the grand prize. He took home a £1,966 (over ₹2.5 lakh) Deliveroo voucher in a nod to the year England last won the World Cup, and a Beatles box set. Ironically, he was handed the prize by a person dressed as Norwegian striker Erling Haaland, prompting fans online to joke that the event was a better place to meet people than dating apps.
The song revived as an anthem
English rock band The Beatles’ classic 1986 hit Hey Jude turned into a major anthem for English fans after England midfielder Jude Bellingham scored two goals to beat Norway 2-1, pushing England into the semifinals. In fact, before the semifinal match against Argentina began, fans watching screenings across pubs in England were recorded singing the song. YouTube also confirmed that daily UK views spiked seven times. On Instagram, YouTube posted a clip of the song, writing, “Watch time up by 50%.” Even Google posted about it on their Instagram.
{{/usCountry}}English rock band The Beatles’ classic 1986 hit Hey Jude turned into a major anthem for English fans after England midfielder Jude Bellingham scored two goals to beat Norway 2-1, pushing England into the semifinals. In fact, before the semifinal match against Argentina began, fans watching screenings across pubs in England were recorded singing the song. YouTube also confirmed that daily UK views spiked seven times. On Instagram, YouTube posted a clip of the song, writing, “Watch time up by 50%.” Even Google posted about it on their Instagram.
{{/usCountry}}(Written by Dhanvie Sharma and Diya Agrawal)