A Dorset-based company has incurred a “significant loss” after ordering 18,000 T-shirts with the inscription “England, World Cup Winners 2022.”
On Saturday, England was ousted from the World Cup after a 2-1 loss to France in the quarterfinals. Karl Baxter had purchased thousands of T-shirts in expectation of Gareth Southgate’s squad winning the tournament.
Mr. Baxter, the managing director of Wholesale Clearance UK in Poole, had planned to sell the shirts for £29.99 apiece, but he is now forced to sell them at a discount. The shirts bear the inscription, “England, World Cup Winners 2022.” Football has returned home.”
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“I’m absolutely gutted that England has been knocked out of the World Cup,” Mr. Baxter said in a press release.
“I have been really impressed with England’s performance in Qatar and was sure they would win this year’s tournament. When approached by a supplier to sell the shirts, I simply couldn’t say, ‘No.’
“But now I’ve been left with 18,000 shirts that say they’ve won, and I’m not sure what to do.
“I’d like to appeal to England fans to purchase one of the shirts, to keep it as a piece of history and a reminder of how well our team played throughout the tournament. While they haven’t won, they are still winners in my eyes.”
The England team on the other hand were favorites to win with the impressive run in the last edition of the tournament in Russia and the second-place finish in the Euro 2020.
The missed penalty kick by England captain Harry Kane was pivotal in England’s 2-1 loss to France.
Aurelien Tchouameni had given France the lead in the first half of the quarterfinals by beating Jordan Pickford from long range.
Olivier Giroud retook the lead for France with a header with 12 minutes remaining after Kane had tied the score in the second half.
The captain of England missed England’s second penalty of the match, shooting over the crossbar.
France will take on the tournament’s biggest surprise. Morocco is in the quarterfinals and hopes to become the first nation since Brazil in 1962 to win back-to-back World Cups.
On Sunday, the winner will face either Argentina or Croatia in the championship match.
