England fan ready to attend his sixth World Cup
· Yahoo Sports
Ronaldo. Messi. Paul Godfrey.
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The Cheltenham Town FC director, club secretary, and England Supporters Club member is about to emulate two of football's biggest stars by attending his sixth World Cup this summer.
Godfrey's appearances may have been up in the stands instead of down on the pitch, but that should take nothing away from a fan who has followed the Three Lions since the 1980s.
"I started going away in the early 2000s, and have been to 138 foreign countries since. I enjoy international football," Godfrey told BBC Radio Gloucestershire.
"I wanted to go before then, but did not have anyone to go with, so I started going to major tournaments in 2002 and have carried on ever since."
But this is not a fandom saved just for the big occasion. Godfrey has gone far and wide with the national team over the past two decades.
Friendlies, qualifiers, you name it, he has got the ticket.
And for a World Cup that has come under scrutiny for ticket prices, Godfrey's loyalty through the years could pay off in six weeks' time.
Should England make the final, Godfrey's seat will cost him about $60 (£46).
"I qualify for cheap tickets because I go to all the games," he said.
"I wouldn't be going if they were at the original prices. That is a big principle, that loyalty should be rewarded.
"If you put in the hard yards and go to the qualifiers and games at Wembley on a rainy Friday night, then you should get something from that."
Not that everyone has been so lucky.
"A lot of people I do know aren't going, and you're going to end up with stadiums with not really football fans," said Godfrey.
"There is a lot of build up and excitement, there is so much hype these days. When the World Cup finally comes around you remember that enthusiasm of when you first watched a World Cup as a kid, the exotic nature of the different countries and locations, it's like nothing else."
Godfrey's itinerary will see him watch the two pre-tournament friendlies against New Zealand and Costa Rica, before a trip to Dallas for the Group L opener with Croatia.
From there he will fly back to the UK, before returning for the knockouts, where tickets and location can become more of a lottery.
"The difficulty is you have to plan for different eventualities based on where you think England will play," said Godfrey.
"So you have to take a punt on winning the group, which we should do if we beat Croatia, so you know where the games are going to be after that, if not you have to re-think."
Balancing World Cup with club duties
And what chance that £46 final ticket to watch The Three Lions gets puts to good use?
"I'm not expecting us to win, it would be great if we did, but I think maybe quarter-finals," said Godfrey.
"To win a World Cup you have to have a little luck and you have to beat two or three of the leading football nations and England have never really done that.
"You need to beat a Brazil, Argentina, Germany or France. That is the task ahead."
Godfrey said he will use his free time to prepare for 2026-27 season at Whaddon Road.
"The past couple of tournaments I have used it to set up an office away from Cheltenham. There are plenty of things I want to get done before the players come back in July to prep for the new season," he said.
"I hope to sign some academy players, and maybe a couple of first-teamers too.
"The time zone will work quite well, it means I can reply to emails from the day when I wake up, and the carry on working when Europe is asleep."