Farage's Football Faux Pas
Nigel Farage Mocked for Posting Old Football Fan Photo as Current Event
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Key Points
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Farage captioned the photo on X with “Proper job. @England,” while showing himself in a pub wearing an England shirt and holding a pint after the 4-2 win.
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Mirror political editor Mikey Smith publicly questioned the timing, reposting Farage’s image with the line: “This…er. This taken tonight was it Nigel?”
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Social media users traced the reused image to “The Armfield Club in Blackpool” and to England’s Euro 2024 game against Denmark on June 20, 2024 (not the 2026 match).
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HuffPost UK quoted a Labour source making a broader credibility attack beyond the football photo—citing questions over a “secret £5 million ‘gift’,” “who paid for his Clacton house,” and “swathes of potentially undeclared private jet and chopper trips with his donor.”
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England’s World Cup opener was described as being driven by Harry Kane (two first-half goals), with Jude Bellingham and Marcus Rashford adding strikes after the break; the next fixtures were then reported as Ghana next Tuesday and Panama next Saturday.
Nigel Farage became a social media punchline on June 18, 2026, after posting a pub photo to celebrate England's 4-2 World Cup win over Croatia — only for users to identify it as a nearly two-year-old image. HuffPost UK and The Mirror both reported that the photo was taken at The Armfield Club in Blackpool during Euro 2024, not after the 2026 opener in Dallas.
Farage captioned the reused image
Mirror Editor's Question Sparked the Online Pile-On
The backlash started quickly. Mikey Smith, political editor at The Mirror, reposted Farage's image with a pointed question:
From there, social media sleuths went to work. They traced the image to June 20, 2024 — exactly 728 days before the England vs. Croatia match. They matched the lighting, Farage's clothing, and the pub's interior to photos already online from that Euro 2024 night. The location was confirmed as The Armfield Club in Blackpool, a pub Farage had visited before during campaign trips to the North West.
Reform UK Admitted the Photo Was Old
By early afternoon, Reform UK stopped defending the image. A spokesperson acknowledged the photo was from an older event, according to The Canary. The party said Farage had watched the match
Critics were not satisfied. Commentators argued that if Farage had simply been in a pub watching the game, a fresh photo would have taken seconds. Using a two-year-old image suggested the moment was staged for social media impact rather than genuine fandom. That conclusion cut directly at the
Labour Seized the Moment to Raise Bigger Questions
The Labour Party used the slip to push harder claims. A Labour source quoted by HuffPost UK said the photo
Those allegations — a secret £5 million gift, questions over who paid for his Clacton house, and undeclared private jet and helicopter trips with a donor — had been circulating before the photo controversy. Labour's move showed how a minor social media error can give opponents a hook to reattach bigger, more damaging stories.
England's Win Deserved the Spotlight — But Didn't Get It
The actual match was a strong start for England. Harry Kane scored twice in the first half. Jude Bellingham and Marcus Rashford added goals after the break, sealing a 4-2 result against Croatia at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, according to Examiner Live. England's next games are against Ghana on Tuesday and Panama the following Saturday.
Instead of riding that wave, the political story consumed the day. The incident is now being cited as a clear example of how social media verification — ordinary users cross-checking photos in minutes — can turn a small symbolic moment into a reputational problem. Future political posts during major tournaments will face far more scrutiny over background details like clocks, TV screens, and timestamps.
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