What is the wolf game England's Euros squad play? The card game the team plays to bond

Chants of "it's coming home" rang out at Wembley Boxpark last night following a sturdy win against Serbia.

In the 13th minute, Jude Bellingham's header gave Gareth Southgate's team the lead and proved to be the lone goal in a tough contest.

Bellingham celebrated in several ways, pointing to his ears, executing a knee slide, and striking his signature hero posture before leading Alexander-Arnold through a routine.

He spoke about the moment when they both fell to one knee and covered their faces with outstretched hands, revealing it was sparked by a card game that England has been playing since at least the 2022 World Cup.

He said: “The celebration was from a game we play called wolf and one of the staff always holds his face like that when he doesn’t know what’s going on.

“So it was more a celebration for the backroom staff who put in so much work every day and they won’t receive any awards like this or get to have the moments we get to have on the pitch, but we value them so much and it’s important going through the tournament that we keep that atmosphere.”

What is the wolf game?

The objective of the game is for one person to be chosen as the "wolf" in a murder mystery while the other players keep their eyes closed and try to figure out who was chosen.There are two phases to each game round in the wolf game: the day phase and the night phase.

Harry Kane acknowledged during the 2022 World Cup that a lot of the team participates and it's a good approach to develop team cohesion.

Kane said: "There about 16 or 17 of us that play wolf and it is a great way to kill some time. It also helps with team bonding.

“When they put that wolf card in, you have to start lying and it is not easy, so I think I am a better villager than I am a wolf. There are definitely a few who are better than me at deceiving people.”

How is the wolf game played?

Players can employ unique powers at night when the werewolves are executing their kills and, throughout the day, the town debates who they believe to be guilty.To begin, players must shuffle and distribute the game cards, making sure to include a Doctor, a Seer, and two werewolves.The Drunk, Witch, and Alpha Werewolf are a few other wild cards that can be used.The game begins in the night phase, when the moderator lets the werewolves select a victim, the doctor is permitted to save one person, and the Seer gets to guess who they think might be a werewolf.

After talking about their characters and casting their votes for who they think is a werewolf, the players wrap up the night round and begin the day round.After that player is eliminated, the night cycle restarts. Until the villagers or the werewolves prevail, the game goes on.