The 2026 edition of Soccer Aid takes place at West Ham’s London Stadium on Sunday evening, with ex-professionals and celebrities stepping on to the pitch to raise money for charity in the annual battle between England and the Rest of the World.

While every celebrity deserves credit for giving up their time for such a good cause, the quality of celebrity players on show has been known to vary considerably.

Professional boxer and former Love Island star Tommy Fury is known for what he can do with his fists rather than his feet. However, he showed that he needed to brush up on his knowledge of the rules of football during appearance at Soccer Aid in 2024.

Despite being born in Manchester, Fury qualified to play for the World XI due to his mother’s Mauritian heritage, as well as his father, John, being of Irish Traveller descent.

Tommy Fury’s Performance at Soccer Aid 2024

His appearance in the match, which was held at Stamford Bridge, went viral for all the wrong reasons. Although he put in plenty of effort, it’s fair to say that Tommy wasn’t a natural on the pitch. At one point, he produced an air shot as he wound up for a strike from distance but missed the ball completely.

However, worse was to come in the form of a viral moment where he appeared to totally forget the rules of the game.

Fury attempted to take a throw-in for the World XI during the first half, but rather than releasing the ball from behind his head, he rolled the ball onto the pitch underarm, much to the amusement of many viewers at home. World XI manager Mauricio Pochettino saw the funny side of it as he keeled over laughing in the dug-out.

Fury’s Dodgy Throw-In

Unsurprisingly, given that one of their players didn’t seem to fully know the rules of the game, the World XI fell to a convincing 6-3 defeat in the match.

Joe Cole opened the scoring for England before Eden Hazard and Alessandro Del Piero turned the game around for the visitors.

Ellen White equalised after a brilliant piece of skill from Jack Wilshere on the half-hour mark, and England didn’t look back from there, with entrepreneur Steven Bartlett scoring twice, and ex-professional players Jermain Defoe and Theo Walcott also getting on the scoresheet.

Of the non-pros on show, Bartlett was the pick of the bunch, while Tom Grennan and England cricketer Stuart Broad also acquitting themselves well. Bartlett was only denied a hat-trick by a brilliant save from former world champion boxer Tony Bellew, who came on for the World XI as a half-time substitute for Petr Cech.

Fury won’t be involved in Sunday night’s game. The 27-year-old is currently preparing for his boxing bout with former world’s strongest man, Eddie Hall on the 13th of June.

Despite being a charity event, one Premier League legend has been banned from participating in Soccer Aid following a “string of complaints.” The much-anticipated event has taken place every year for the last 20, and this year’s match – set for West Ham’s London Stadium on May 31 – boasts a star-studded lineup.

A host of high-profile ex-footballers and celebrities have been confirmed for the game, which will see Robbie Williams go head-to-head in the dugout with Olympic icon and world’s fastest man Usain Bolt to raise money for UNICEF. Jordi Alba leads the football debutants, alongside female stars Jen Beattie and Ali Krieger, all of whom will play for the Rest of the World team.

Wayne Rooney, Jermain Defoe, Theo Walcott, Toni Duggan, Joe Hart, and Steph Houghton are among the England stars, while history will be made as actor Owen Cooper becomes the youngest-ever player and first-ever teenager after his role in the hit Netflix series ‘Adolescence’. But while bigger names help raise more money for charity, one of the Premier League’s biggest stars finds himself alone on the ban list.

The Three-Time Premier League Winner Banned From Soccer Aid

Yaya Toure – a Manchester City legend and widely regarded as one of the best midfielders of his generation after winning three Premier League titles – played 73 minutes in the 2018 Soccer Aid at Old Trafford and was set to feature for the Rest of the World again in 2020. However, he exited the squad in disgrace.

Toure was axed from the fixture after The Sun reported that he had offered to hire sex workers for his teammates at the five-star hotel in a message sent in the WhatsApp group chat. The Ivorian also posted a video of a naked woman in a bath in the chat, which included female players and stars from both teams.

UNICEF and ITV received a “string of complaints” about Toure’s message, and he was criticised at breakfast in the hotel on the following Friday morning. After it was concluded his “behaviour didn’t align with the values of the event and its cause,” the former Barcelona midfielder was removed from the lineup and forced to issue an apology on social media for his “inappropriate joke”.

Yaya Toure’s Apology After Soccer Aid Controversy in 2020

“I would like to apologise to everyone involved in Soccer Aid for an inappropriate joke I deeply regret,” Toure wrote on X once the dust had settled on his misconduct. “It was meant as a joke, however, I lacked thorough consideration for the feelings of all the other participants. That being said, I deleted the jokes within minutes and I immediately apologised to all inside the group.”

That year’s Soccer Aid fixture was played behind closed doors and saw England win 4-3 on penalties. Toure has not been invited back to play in Soccer Aid since but made a surprise appearance on Sky Sports on Sunday after watching Arsenal’s 2-1 win over Chelsea, where he came under fire for his comments about the current Premier League leaders.

Rafael Leao has just issued a come and get me plea to the Premier League, with Manchester United given a clear green light to go and complete the Portuguese’s transfer.

Leao has long been linked with a move to England and it looks like now is the right time, with his seven-year spell at AC Milan set to come to an end.

United have been linked with Leao before, but never managed to get a deal done and with the Red Devils in the market for a left winger this summer – as well as two central midfielders – now could be the perfect time to bring Leao in.

Rafael Leao reveals he will leave AC Milan this summer

Speaking on Portuguese TV, Leao was asked about the rumours swirling around his future at the San Siro.

He said: “I’m proud as I made history at AC Milan but now I want a new chapter. I’m looking forward to playing in another league.

“I did my best for Milan, the club gave me everything, but I’m feeling ready for a new team, new league and new challenge.”

The 26-year-old has already played in Portugal, France and Italy, with the Bundesliga or La Liga the only real competition for Premier League sides if he does want to experience a new league.

There was a suggestion that Milan would demand in the region of £60million for him this summer, but that price tag has dropped slightly, with Leao having just two years left to run on his current contract in Italy.

Milan are now understood to be willing to trade at around £43million, with United already making moves to sign him this summer.

Recent reports in the the print version of Corriere dello Sport, via Sport Witness, claimed that United have already initiated contact with super agent Jorge Mendes over a potential summer move for the winger.

It has always been a “dream” of Leao’s to play in the Premier League and he may well get his wish this summer.

United will not have it all their own way when it comes to negotiating a transfer, however, with a number of other club interested in signing Leao – namely Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham. Chelsea could also make a move given their desire to sign another left winger this summer.

Rafael Leao has not had the best of seasons with AC Milan

Former AC Milan boss Stefano Pioli once described Leao as an “artist”. He said: “Rafa is an artist. Artists are geniuses, they must be guided but they also need a bit of freedom. He is a player who can decide any game at any moment, but he knows he still has steps to take to become truly unstoppable.”

Leao has had his troubles at Milan, falling out of favour with Paulo Fonseca and with the Milanese fans, booed off by his own fans during a game with Atalanta earlier in the season.

Despite his troubles he still managed 10 goals and three assists in 31 games as the Serie A giants finished a disappointing fifth. Those stats are well down on the 25 goal contributions he made in 2024/25 and the 29 he made in 2023/24, suggesting his time at the San Siro has naturally run its course.