SOUTHPORT, England (AP) 鈥� How鈥檚 this for a dreamy scenario for English sports fans on Sunday.
An Englishman becomes 鈥渢he champion golfer of the year鈥� by winning the British Open at Royal Birkdale.
Then, a few hours later, England鈥檚 soccer team wins the .
鈥淚t would be mega,鈥� said Matt Wallace, one of 21 English golfers in the field for the final major of 2026 taking place on the northwest coast of England from Thursday.
So, is this joyous sporting double a possibility? Sure.
A probability? That would be pushing it.
It might be the most well-known fact in all of sports in these parts that England 鈥� where soccer is king 鈥� hasn鈥檛 won the World Cup since 1966. This year, the men’s team is into and will face Lionel Messi and Argentina on Wednesday.
Less known is that no Englishman has won the Open Championship in England since Tony Jacklin in 1969.
Soccer fans call it six decades of hurt, and the wait is getting excruciating for the golfers, too. Indeed, since Jacklin, only one Englishman has won the Open and that was Nick Faldo 鈥� three times (1987, 鈥�90 and 鈥�92) and all of them in Scotland.
Fleetwood is a local lad and a fan favorite
might be England鈥檚 best bet this year and, boy, how the locals would celebrate a win.
As a kid, Fleetwood lived just round the corner from Royal Birkdale, which he鈥檇 sneak on when accompanying his father, Peter, on evening dog walks.
He鈥檚 the poster boy for this championship but is aware he鈥檚 sharing the limelight with the country鈥檚 more globally recognized soccer players this week.
鈥淔or those guys, they definitely carry a nation on their shoulders a lot more than we do,鈥� the No. 9-ranked Fleetwood said. 鈥淭hey鈥檝e been doing a great job.鈥�
And yes, the soccer will be intruding on the golf.
On Monday, Matt Fitzpatrick 鈥� the highest-ranked English golfer at No. 3 鈥� pleaded to be given a later tee time for the first round on Thursday. The England-Argentina game kicks off at 8 p.m. local time on Wednesday night and wouldn鈥檛 finish until close to 11 p.m. if it goes to extra time and penalties.
鈥淚f anyone鈥檚 listening, … it would be nice if all the English lads were late/early,鈥� Fitzpatrick said of the Thursday/Friday tee times. 鈥淭hat would be great.鈥�
They weren’t so lucky. Each of the first eight groups to go out in the first round on Thursday will contain an Englishman.
Matthew Baldwin, who was born a stone鈥檚 throw away in Southport, is a member at Royal Birkdale and came through qualifying to take his place in his home major. He will have the honor of hitting the first shot of the championship at 6:35 a.m. on Thursday.
That might mean him having to wake up at 4 a.m. Will he watch the soccer?
England soccer fans dotted around Royal Birkdale
The World Cup effect is certainly evident around Royal Birkdale, which is a short drive from the soccer hotbed of Liverpool. Watching players on the practice putting green on Sunday was a young girl wearing an England jersey with 鈥淏ellingham鈥� and 鈥�10鈥� on the back 鈥� a nod to England star Jude Bellingham 鈥� and with a tattoo of the England flag on each cheek.
R&A chief executive Mark Darbon has said the final round of the Open could be brought forward to avoid a clash with the World Cup final, which begins at 8 p.m. local time. The last round might not finish until around 6:30 p.m. 鈥� and that鈥檚 if there鈥檚 no need for a playoff.
Just imagine if it鈥檚 Fleetwood making that late-evening walk down the 18th ahead of collecting the claret jug and watching England in the soccer final.
鈥淚t would be outrageous,鈥� said Roger Shutt, a 70-year-old Englishman who was one of the thousands of fans to attend Monday鈥檚 practice round. 鈥淚f they coincide, it鈥檒l be a holiday for everyone.鈥�
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