What celebrities are in the Soccer Aid 2022 line-up? Confirmed England v World XI teams

England and the World XI are set to face off one again tonight as Soccer Aid returns to its usual June slot – after the two previous installments of the charity football extravaganza were moved to September.

The event has always been able to rely on some big names – pairing footballing legends like Roberto Carlos and Andrea Pirlo with rather less accomplished players like comedian Lee Mack and YouTuber Chunkz – and once again some pretty surreal line-ups will be taking to the field for tonight’s clash.

The headline news is that One Direction star Liam Payne makes his debut as captain of the England side, while Dragons’ Den star Steven Bartlett and comedians Russell Howard, Munya Chawawa and Alex Brooker also all appear in the match for the very first time.

Meanwhile sprinting superstar Usain Bolt returns to skipper the World XI – his fourth time doing so – and is joined by the likes of Brazil World Cup-winning captain Cafu and Love Island star Kem Cetinay, the latter of whom bagged a brace in the last Soccer Aid match.

Established in 2006 by Robbie Williams in aid of children’s charity UNICEF, the annual encounter will take place at the London Stadium in 2022 – formerly the Olympic Stadium, now the home of Premier League team West Ham.

In the build-up to the game, Payne said “It doesn’t get much better than captaining England in Soccer Aid while fundraising for UNICEF. I can’t believe I get to run out onto the pitch with some of my heroes all while raising money for such a great cause. To be given the captain’s armband is a real honour and I’m determined to lead us to victory!”

Who is playing in Soccer Aid 2022?

Following in the footsteps of previous years, two teams consisting of ex-professionals and celebrities compete as England and the World XI or ‘The Rest of the World’.

Liam Payne will captain the England team, and will be joined by Emily in Paris star Lucien Laviscount and comedian Alex Brooker.

Meanwhile, Usain Bolt will captain the Soccer Aid World XI FC. He’ll be joined by TV actor Martin Compston (Our House, Line of Duty) and comedian Mo Gilligan.

England Soccer Aid team line-up

Captain: Liam Payne (Musician) and podcast lover.

Tom Grennan (Musician)

Lucien Laviscount (Actor)

Chunkz (YouTuber)

Russell Howard (Comedian)

Aitch (Rapper)

Damian Lewis (Actor)

Sir Mo Farah (Olympian)

Mark Wright (Reality TV star)

David Harewood (Actor)

Alex Brooker (Comedian)

Joe Cole (Former footballer)

Teddy Sheringham (Former footballer)

David James (Former goalkeeper)

Mark Noble (Former footballer)

Anita Asante (Former footballer)

Eni Aluko (Former footballer)

Gary Neville (Former footballer)

Jamie Carragher (Former footballer)

Fara Williams (Former footballer)

Stewart Downing (Former footballer)

England Soccer Aid manager

Manager: Harry Redknapp (Former football manager)

Redknapp said: “‘Harry Redknapp, England Manager’ – who would ever have thought that, eh? Not that I was keeping score – but they tell me that England haven’t won since 2018.

“Oh dear. Anyone who knows me will tell you that I would never turn my country down, so when they asked me to be England Manager, I had to say yes.

“I know Usain is a bit miffed I’m leaving him – but the big man will get over that! I hope to see you all there on Sunday 12th June. Get your tickets now!”

Assistant manager: Emma Hayes (Football manager)

Goalkeeping coach: David Seaman (Former goalkeeper)

Assistant goalkeeping coach: Vicky McClure (Actor)

Rest of the World Soccer Aid team line-up

Captain: Usain Bolt (Fastest man on Earth)

Martin Compston (Actor)

Mo Gilligan (Actor)

Chelcee Grimes (Actor)

Steven Bartlett (Actor)

Noah Beck (TikTok star)

Lee Mack (Comedian)

Munya Chawawa (Comedian)

Kem Cetinay (Reality TV star)

Cafu (Former footballer)

Mark Strong (Actor)

Tom Stoltman (World’s strongest man 2022)

Andriy Shevchenko (Former footballer)

Petr Cech (Former goalkeeper)

Roberto Carlos (Former footballer)

Andrea Pirlo (Former footballer)

Heather O’Reilly (Former footballer)

Patrice Evra (Former footballer)

Carli Lloyd (Former footballer)

World XI Soccer Aid manager

Manager: Arsène Wenger (Former football manager)

Wenger said: “I am really looking forward to this special football match in June. It’s great and special to play a football match together with former opponents for a good purpose. Football unites, football gives hope and I am looking forward to making my contribution on Sunday 12th June at the London Stadium.”

Assistant manager: Robbie Keane (Former footballer)

Coach: Idris Elba (Actor)

Soccer Aid 2022 commentators

Iain Sterling, better known as the voice over star of Love Island, will be among the commentary team for the match.

He provided co-comms for Sam Matterface, the regular voice of England games on ITV.

Until 2020, Clive Tyldesley had been the lead role in the coverage but he came under fire for comments made about Chunkz during the 2020 event and has not returned for Soccer Aid since then.

Soccer Aid 2022 presenters

Dermot O’Leary hosts the event – as he has done since 2010 – and this year he’s joined by popular pundit Alex Scott, who will be reporting from the touchline throughout the evening.

Meanwhile, TV and radio presenter Maya Jama will be returning as a pundit, after proving hugely popular with viewers in her first two appearances in recent years.

Soccer Aid 2022 tickets

Check out all the details about Soccer Aid 2022 tickets online