Birmingham City react to big Jude Bellingham, England update | OneFootball

Thomas Tuchel's squad for the upcoming FIFA World Cup has now been confirmed

The FIFA World Cup 2026 in the United States, Canada and Mexico is now a matter of weeks away, and millions across the country were certainly glued to their screens at 10AM on Friday to see Thomas Tuchel's confirmed England squad.

It is the German's first major tournament in charge of the Three Lions, having been confirmed as manager in late 2024 following the resignation of Sir Gareth Southgate just days after the UEFA Euro 2024 final defeat to Spain at the Olympiastadion in Berlin.

The upcoming tournament has certainly come under intense scrutiny in the past months too, whether that be for the number of teams involved, as it has now extended to 48 nations as opposed to the previous 32-team format, as well as logistics such as prices of tickets for any given game, flights and accomodation.

England will also be hoping to end a 60-year-long trophy drought this summer, having reached the past two European Championship finals, with an agonising World Cup quarter-final loss to eventual runners-up, France, in Qatar back in 2022 sandwiched in between.

Plenty of discourse was, of course, given in the lead-up to full confirmation of Tuchel's 26-man squad, including that of former Hull City and Sheffield United centre-back, Harry Maguire, who has been omitted after previously earning cult hero status for his commitment to the cause in four consecutive major tournaments.

Some inclusions, though, were far less of a shock, and that includes the selection of Real Madrid sensation, Jude Bellingham, whose seismic rise is only continuing at this moment in time.

And, it's fair to say that this didn't go unnoticed by representatives of his boyhood club, Birmingham City.

Birmingham City react as Jude Bellingham makes 26-man England World Cup squad

The 22-year-old, of course, became Birmingham's youngest-ever player and goalscorer in August 2019, making 44 appearances for the West Midlands outfit before signing for Borussia Dortmund in an initial £25m deal 11 months later.

Months later, he received his first England cap in a friendly win over the Republic of Ireland, and has since gone on to represent the Three Lions on 46 occasions, scoring six times in the process.

His first international goal also came on the World Cup stage in Qatar, scoring in the 6-2 thriller against Iran in the opening group stage encounter, and he will hope to have a similar impact this time under Tuchel in a group which sees England face off against Croatia, Ghana and Panama.

Despite his rise to fame, Bellingham has never forgotten his roots in Birmingham and the surrounding areas, which saw him feature in the unveiling of the club's upcoming 62,000-seater Powerhouse stadium design last November.

Screenwriter, Steven Knight OBE, also wishes the midfielder returns to his boyhood club by the time he is 28, which would be in 2031, a year after the Powerhouse is scheduled to open its doors.

However, returning to the here and now, Blues' official X account wrote the simple message of: "A special talent, made in Birmingham," accompanied by a picture of Bellingham celebrating one of his four goals for the club back in 2019/20.

Jude Bellingham isn't the only ex-Birmingham City representative in England's World Cup squad

Whilst the club's affiliation to Bellingham is well-known at this point, those away from St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park might not be that aware that the Galacticos ace isn't the only ex-Blues representative within Tuchel's squad.

Indeed, his inclusion may have raised some eyebrows, but Dan Burn of Newcastle United spent the first half of the 2013/14 Championship season on loan with Birmingham from Fulham under Lee Clark.

The towering centre-back played 28 times for the club before he was recalled by the West London outfit in January 2014, with his solitary goal coming in a 3-1 EFL Cup victory against the-then holders, Swansea City, in September 2013.

As such, those in B9 will be hoping both can play a part in helping the nation achieve greatness on a footballing level once more.