Jude Bellingham and England players distraught after their EURO 2024 Final loss (AFP)
England players have reportedly felt that the advert went against the egalitarian ethos that has been established in the back-to-back Euro finalists, by portraying Bellingham as the most influential presence on the field for the team.
England’s breakout football star Jude Bellingham reportedly does not have a good relationship with his England teammates. The team is also annoyed with an Adidas advertisement featuring the England youngster.
The Athletic have claimed that Adidas’ Euro 2024 video titled ‘Hey Jude’ has not sat too well with Bellingham’s compatriots.
As per the report, the team feels the video seemed to portray the English young midfielder as the most influential player on the pitch for the Gareth Southgate-coached side. They also felt that it went against the egalitarian ethos that has been established in the back-to-back Euro finalists.
The said video was shared by Adidas on their YouTube channel. The two-minute-long video featured the iconic Beatles song ‘Hey Jude’. The clip began with several England fans watching the Euros with a tense look on their face as they found their side in a do-or-die situation.
Moments later, the entire pressure was lifted following Jude Bellingham’s stunning overhead kick against Slovakia in the Round of 16 match. The goal led to cheers in every place in England among both the elderly and the young. Following a brief montage of celebrations, the video faded to a solo clip of Bellingham with the message ‘You Got This’.
As per The Athletic, the video was quite well received by England fans but it led to some of Jude Bellingham’s teammates feeling ‘the tone was at odds’. The report further talked about the journey of the 21-year-old and how he followed a different path when compared to his England teammates.
After a couple of impressive spells at Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid, Bellingham looked to make an impact by guiding his national side to European glory. His talent and skill led to the youngster being fast-tracked throught the nation’s development teams. This led to Bellingham spending a negligible amount with others of his age group.
Apart from his friendship with Trent Alexander-Arnold, the Real Madrid midfielder does not have strong connections within the England squad.
Within no time, Jude Bellingham was also promoted to the team’s leadership group which had Harry Kane, Kyle Walker and Declan Rice. However, The Athletic claimed Bellingham’s leadership did not extend to attending media duties at Blankenhain while less-experienced players such as Cole Palmer, Anthony Gordon and Adam Wharton had to answer awkward questions. This led to England icon Wayne Rooney also urging Bellingham to take more responsibility.
Following the heartbreaking final, Jude Bellingham addressed his team’s performance against Spain. The young midfielder hoped that he and his compatriots would learn from the consecutive final defeat and eventually lead England to glory.
