“Rule, Britannia, Britannia! rule the waves,” is one of the best loved chants of English football fans. But the supporters only once had a real cause to sing the song: 1966 in England at the eighth World Cup. When captain Bobby Moore received the World Cup trophy, the Coupe Jules Rimet, from Queen Elisabeth II in London’s Wembley Stadium on 30 July 1966, the jubilation in the mother country of football knew no bounds. For 2006, the mother country of football is again displaying unshakeable optimism. The shrewd Swedish coach Sven-Göran Eriksson has without doubt such a conglomeration of talented players at his disposal as seldom before in English football: Rio Ferdinand, Michael Owen, David Beckham and young star Wayne Rooney are already giving the fans reason to dream about the day when Britannia’s football rules the waves again.