Only 4% Of Fans Back England To Win World Cup

London 27th November 2007 … A Football Fans Census survey of over 3,000 England fans from all Premier and Football League Clubs has revealed that only 4% believe England will win the tournament in 2010.

The survey comes hot on the heels of the FA’s announcement to conduct a 'root and branch review' into the senior England set up following the defeat to Croatia. Fans will be hoping for some positive steps, as only 13% of them currently believe that the side will get beyond the Quarter Final stage in the 2010 World Cup.

England’s Poisoned Chalice?

The majority of fans (54%) believe the England Manager’s job has become a poisoned chalice. 60% of fans think there is too much pressure on the England Manager and 25% think that there is “way too much” pressure.

Worryingly, for everyone who has the best interests of the English national team at heart, 76% of fans feel there is a possibility that the amount of pressure on the England Manager could make it difficult to attract the best candidates.

Others Should Share Responsibility

While 94% of fans endorse The FA’s decision to sack Steve McClaren - they also feel that others should shoulder the responsibility.

When asked who they would blame the most for England's failure to qualify for the European Championships, 45% of fans blame the players - only 6% less than those who blame the manager. In another indictment of the “Golden Generation”, only 35% of fans think that the players still care enough about playing for England, although the majority of fans (58%) do not feel that individual players should be booed.

81% of fans feel it was right to sack Terry Venables, but their discontent does not end in the dressing room; 67% of supporters feel that Brian Barwick, The FA Chief Executive, should take “a lot” (45%) or “full” (22%) responsibility for England's failure to qualify for the European Championships. The majority of supporters (54%) also feel that FA Chairman, Geoff Thompson should take a lot (40%) or full (14%) responsibility.

Nationality Not An Issue

England fans want the best person for the England Manager job, regardless of nationality, and they feel that that person is Jose Mourinho.

The results are a clear indication that the majority of fans want the best man for the job, regardless of nationality. Non-English managers picked up 70% of the total manager vote, while only 14% of fans state that the next manager ‘has to be English’.

Fans were asked who they would like to see appointed as the next England Manager from a choice of 20 of the bookies’ favourite candidates on the day Steve McClaren was sacked.

Jose Mourinho emerges as the clear favourite among England fans as the man they want to succeed Steve McClaren. The “Special One” polled 36% of the vote, and in doing so received over four times as many votes as the two next best placed managers - Martin O’Neill and Harry Redknapp - both on 8% each.

Club & Country

The club v country debate is often central to discussions about the national side. While fans are most loyal to their clubs, they are also signalling that they want football’s decision makers to ensure that future developments in the game strike a balance between club football and the strength of the national side. When asked which is most important for them, a majority of fans 51% said their club, but 43% replied that club and country were equally important to and 6% said their country was most important.

The majority of fans aren’t too concerned about the effect the number of club games played has on the English National side (57% of think that the current amount of club games played has a neutral impact) however there is a significant minority of 31% who do feel that there is a negative impact.

Premier League Power

Fans are also questioning whether The FA has enough power within the game to implement the right strategy, only 14% of fans feel the balance of power between The FA and the Premier League is about right. 54% of fans feel the Premier League has too much power compared to The FA, while only 20% feel The FA has too much power.

Foreign Players

Whilst the quality of play in the Premier League may have benefited from an influx of foreign players, 59% of fans think that the current level of foreign players has a negative impact on the English National side.

Coaching System

There is a feeling that the coaching system is partly to blame for England’s failure in the Euro 2008 campaign, 76% of fans think that the English coaching system is not producing enough good English players, while 66% of fans feel that cutting the number of foreign players training through the club Academy systems would have a positive impact on the English national side.

A full copy of report is available to download at:
www.footballfanscensus.com/england