Why Are England Playing a Darts Song at the World Cup 2026? ‘Chase the Sun’ Explained

Four times. That’s how many times ‘Chase the Sun’ by Planet Funk echoed around the stadium on Wednesday night as England dismantled Croatia 4-2 in their Group L opener at the 2026 World Cup. If you’re a regular at Alexandra Palace for the darts, those opening bars felt like home. If you’ve never watched an arrow thrown in anger, Wednesday night was an unexpected introduction to one of British sport’s most beloved anthems — and proof that England’s choice of goal song at the biggest tournament on earth was anything but accidental.

What is a goal song — and why does every team have one at World Cup 2026?

At the 2026 World Cup, hosted across the United States, Canada and Mexico, each national team has selected an official song to be played through the stadium speakers immediately after every goal they score. It’s a tradition long established in domestic football stadiums and indoor arenas — think the Premier League, the NHL, professional boxing — that is making its grand entrance on the global stage for the first time.

The lineup of artists reads like an eclectic festival bill: The Proclaimers, AC/DC, Daft Punk and Lynyrd Skynyrd are among the acts whose music will soundtrack goal celebrations across North America this summer. Each selection is deliberate, a cultural statement — it says something about who the nation is, what atmosphere the coaching staff wants to create, or simply what the squad collectively loves to hear.

England’s choice generated more conversation than almost any other on the first matchday. And the reason is straightforward: most people know ‘Chase the Sun’ not from football, but from a very different sport entirely.

‘Chase the Sun’ by Planet Funk — the darts anthem England brought to the world stage

Planet Funk’s ‘Chase the Sun’ has been a fixture of professional darts for well over a decade. If you’ve watched the PDC World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace — known to devotees simply as ‘Ally Pally’ — or caught the Premier League Darts on Sky Sports, those opening synthesiser notes are burned into your memory. It’s the sound of a crowd transformed, of tungsten hitting treble twenty, of sport operating at its most joyfully unhinged.

England’s football squad claimed it as their own for the 2026 World Cup, and against Croatia, it proved a perfect fit. Kane, Bellingham, Saka, Foden — the goals flowed, the music played, and ‘Chase the Sun’ completed an unlikely journey from the oche to the grandest stage in football. Planet Funk’s track shot up the Spotify and Apple Music charts within hours of the final whistle.

The reaction across social media was instant and overwhelmingly positive. Clips of the goal celebrations backed by the darts anthem racked up millions of views. Darts fans felt seen. Football fans discovered a new favourite song. And England found themselves at the centre of the first viral moment of the tournament.

England 4-2 Croatia: the perfect opening statement

The goal song had plenty of opportunity to make its mark. England produced a performance of genuine quality against a Croatian side that had pushed them to the limit in previous tournaments, running out 4-2 winners in convincing fashion to send an early warning to the rest of the competition.

Manager Thomas Tuchel, navigating his first major tournament at the helm of the Three Lions, will have taken immense satisfaction from both the result and the manner of it. England looked fluid and direct, with purpose in their movement and quality in their finishing that recent tournaments had not always delivered. Four goals in a group stage opener is the kind of statement that travels through a tournament.

For the players, there is something genuinely energising about hearing a familiar song blast through the stadium after scoring. The connection to darts — where ‘Chase the Sun’ soundtracks some of the most electric sporting atmospheres Britain produces — is entirely intentional. It’s the sound of a crowd going absolutely berserk, and England wanted that feeling at the World Cup.

The battle of the goal songs: which nation made the best choice?

England’s viral moment opened a wider conversation that has captivated football fans across the planet: which country has the best goal song at the 2026 World Cup? Social media has become the unofficial leaderboard, with supporters debating, ranking and mocking each nation’s choice in equal measure.

France opted for Daft Punk — the Parisian electronic duo, a statement of cultural prestige. AC/DC’s hard rock features for another nation. The Proclaimers bring their irresistible Scots-folk energy to the tournament. Lynyrd Skynyrd provides a slice of southern American swagger. The competition within the competition is genuinely entertaining.

But England currently lead the table. Four plays of ‘Chase the Sun’ in the opening game, a viral moment of the tournament’s first week, and a song that is now inextricably linked to England’s 2026 World Cup campaign. If Bellingham, Kane or whoever it might be lifts the trophy at MetLife Stadium on 19 July, ‘Chase the Sun’ will play one final, glorious time. For England supporters — and quite a few darts fans who have found a new sport to love — that’s a moment worth dreaming about.

FAQ