The curse of Euro 96! From domestic abuse and prison sentences to affairs – how the last England squad to make the semi-finals lost their WAGs after crushing defeat against Germany

  • Euro 1996 squad have suffered series of unsuccessful relationships with WAGs
  • The team were paired up with childhood sweethearts and model girlfriends 
  • Many of the couples have now split, with some having scandalous affairs 
  • Paul Gascoigne’s partner Sheryl Failes was subjected to domestic abuse
  • Meanwhile David Seaman left wife for Dancing on Ice co-star Frankie Poultney
  • Tony Adam and Jane Shea’s marriage was ruined by alcohol and drug addiction

The England squad and their wives, girlfriends and adoring are currently riding high after their side’s spectacular 4-0 win against Ukraine. 

Their success has drawn comparisons with the Euro 1996 squad, who made it to the semi-final before they were knocked out after Gareth Southgate missed the crucial penalty against Germany.

But while Southgate has remained faithful to his wife of 20 years Alison, whose off-pitch support the manager has credited with keeping him grounded, many of his former teammates have not been so lucky in love.

From drug addiction and prison sentences to scandalous affairs and domestic abuse, here FEMAIL reveals what happened to the WAGS of Euro 1996…  

The England team of back row left to right, Paul Ince, David Platt, Steve McManaman, David Seaman, Gareth Southgate and Alan Shearer. Front row left to right Paul Gascoigne, Teddy Sheringham, Tony Adams, Stuart Pearce and Darren Anderton, line up before the European Championship Finals semi final match between England and Germany at Wembley, on June 26 1996

PAUL GASCOIGNE AND SHERYL FAILES 

SPLIT IN 1998 AFTER ALLEGATIONS OF PHYSICAL ABUSE 

Born in Gateshead, Paul ‘Gazza’ Gascoigne, 53, won legions of fans after scoring his ‘best goal ever’ during the squad’s match against Scotland in Euro 96. 

Gascoigne was England’s talisman at the contest and was even seen consoling Southgate after the defender’s penalty miss against Germany in the semi-final shootout. 

At the time, he was engaged to long-term girlfriend  Sheryl Failes, whom he had been with for six years.

The couple met in 1990 on a rare evening out for Sheryl, who has said she didn’t ‘really know who he was.’  

Gascoigne was England’s talisman at the contest and was even seen consoling Southgate after the defender’s penalty miss against Germany in the semi-final shootout


Gascoigne married his longterm girlfriend Sheryl weeks after the competition in a Hello! meringue fest on 1 July 1996 – but it later emerged she endured years of physical and emotional bullying (left, on their honeymoon, and right, in 1996) 

When they met, the career of Gazza was about to plunge into decline through injury.

He administered the first beating while they were on holiday in Florida. She considerately picked up the discarded bum bag of Paul’s great mate, Jimmy ‘Five Bellies’ Gardner, and Paul flew into a rage and accused her of trying to sleep with him.

She previously told the Daily Mail: ‘I totally believed it was a one-off. He crumbled in a heap, sobbing. I wanted to believe.’

They married weeks after the Euros in a Hello! meringue-fest on 1 July 1996. 

But four months later, he beat her up so badly while they were on a break at the Gleneagles Hotel that the sorry truth spilled out.   

The couple had a son, Regan, with Sheryl and he also adopted Sheryl’s two children from her first marriage, Mason and Bianca. 

In an interview with a Sunday newspaper Gazza admitted beating Sheryl on a regular basis for two years.

The couple had a son, Regan, with Sheryl and he also adopted Sheryl’s two children from her first marriage, Mason and Bianca (pictured left to right, Sheryl, Mason and Bianca) 

She endured years of physical and emotional bullying, but she still stood by him after their divorce in 1998.

She received a generous settlement of £660,000 in cash and £120,000 a year during the divorce.

But even while filing for divorce they saw each other and in 2000 she holidayed with him. 

She was by his side when he entered rehab in Arizona. In 2003, he turned up shaven-headed and there were incidence with bulimia, twitching, fear of death, OCD, booze and drugs. 

The payments stopped, and she helped him financially, taking a large bank loan to do so. In 2008, she offered to pay his rehab bills.

The same year, a psychotic Paul was sectioned three times. On his release, he went to Sheryl’s house. 

To her dismay he had agreed to make a documentary and even after he disappeared 12 days later, ‘despite me trying to cancel the documentary, he insisted we keep filming. He accused me of being unsupportive and not assisting his recovery.’ 

In 2009, Sheryl published a tell-all book entitled Stronger: My Life Surviving Gazza in which she claimed he would force her to have sex even when she refused.

In 2009, Sheryl published a tell-all book entitled Stronger: My Life Surviving Gazza, before taking part in I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here in 2010 

But the mother-of-three wrote that he once endangered their son by driving him while drunk, that Gascoigne’s use of drugs led directly to her son Mason’s issues with cocaine and that the abuse she suffered at his hands made her unable to love another man. 

She has since spoken out about the abuse, revealing: ‘It doesn’t start with the first punch, it starts with little digs: I should be grateful because he put a roof over my head. And there was a truth in that. 

‘You’re a vulnerable woman with nothing, he’s stressed because he’s at a new club, everyone around you is saying pander to him, and then, when the blows start, you’re thinking, is it you? 

‘You get caught up in it. It sounds ludicrous, but that’s how it happens. And you’re keeping quiet. Keeping secrets isn’t good for anybody.’

Gascoigne continues to face a long battle with alcoholism and revealed as recently as February that he had begun drinking again, saying: ‘I’ll always be an alcoholic.’

DAVID SEAMAN AND DEBBIE RODGERS

SPLIT IN 2010 AMID CHEATING ALLEGATIONS  

In 1984, Seaman ended his first marriage to wife Sandra – mother to his two eldest children, Dan and Thomas – after confessing to an affair with Debbie, who worked as an Arsenal receptionist (pictured together in December 1996) 

In 1984, Seaman ended his first marriage to wife Sandra – mother to his two eldest children, Dan and Thomas – after confessing to an affair with Debbie, who worked as an Arsenal receptionist. 

The goalkeeper had been dating girlfriend Debbie for a year when England went to Euro 1996. 

The couple went on to marry at Castle Ashby House in Northamptonshire on 15 July 1998 and he told OK! magazine: ‘This time, it’s for good.’ 

But the couple separated in 2009 and divorced in 2010 amid allegations of adultery.  

At the time, friends of Seaman, who earned 75 caps for his country, said he left his wife, who also acted as his agent, because he was ‘bored’. 

Meanwhile Debbie claimed the ex-Arsenal star had ‘at least two other women on the go’ during their 15-year marriage. 


The couple went on to marry at Castle Ashby House in Northamptonshire on 15 July 1998 and he told OK! magazine: ‘This time, it’s for good’ – but they went on to divorce in 2010 

Months later, Debbie was said to have been left ‘devastated’ after hearing Seaman had set up home with one of the Dancing On Ice skating professionals.

Seaman fell in love with Frankie Poulter when they were partnered up together on Dancing On Ice live tour in 2008 and after David finished fourth in the 2006 series.

Debbie was said to be in shock after news of her husband’s secret romance with 36-year-old Frankie Poultney came to light.

The ex-England and Arsenal goalkeeper moved into a £500,000 riverside home in Buckinghamshire with the ice dancer just three months after he left the former receptionist and their two children.

Debbie said she was furious with Seaman for moving on so quickly.

‘He has humiliated me, and the kids. He might think he’s single in his eyes but we are still married even though we are not living together.

‘The least he could have done was let me know he had found someone else.’

Meanwhile Frankie and David revealed they had got engaged in 2013 when the former England goalkeeper proposed over Christmas and were married in 2015.  

TONY ADAMS AND JANE SHEA 

SPLIT IN 1997 AS THEY BATTLED DRUG AND ALCOHOL ADDICTIONS 

Tony Adam’s marriage to Jane Shea was beset with problems caused by her drug addiction and his alcoholism, and they split in 1997 

Arsenal legend Tony Adams spent his entire playing career of 22 years as a defender at the club.

He won four top flight division titles, three FA Cups, two Football League Cups, a UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup, and three FA Community Shields.

 Shea went on to clock-up 28 offences, mostly committed to fund her drug habit, which one ex-boyfriend claimed cost her £250,000 a year when they were together

In total Adams appeared 66 times for England, scoring five times. There is a statue of him at Emirates stadium.

He met his wife Jane Shea in 1991 while she was working as a barmaid at a club in Islington.

At the time, she was dabbling in heroin and cocaine. 

He married wife Jane Shea in July 1992 at a grand country house and the couple had two children, Oliver and Amber. 

They enjoyed all the luxuries of life – a large home in Essex, exotic holidays with their three children and expensive, designer clothing.      

But their marriage was beset with problems caused by his alcoholism and her drug addiction and less than four years after the wedding, Shea checked into a rehab clinic. 

It was in September 1996, as Tony fought to save his marriage, that he decided to speak candidly about his drink problem.

‘Telling the other lads was a very big obstacle for me but I am not living a lie and I feel better for it being out in the open,’ he said at the time.

‘I looked at myself in the mirror and realised things were wrong. I am changing my life now and I want respect for myself.

‘I think I will be better for it. It’s bigger than football, bigger than my family, bigger than everything. It’s all about me. I have a lot of lot of things to work on.’

Repeated admissions to drug rehabilitation clinics to beat Shea’s addictions failed. The couple split in 2007.  

In total Arsenal legend Tony Adams appeared 66 times for England, scoring five times. There is a statue of him at Emirates stadium (pictured with the Duke of Cambridge in Norfolk in 2020)  

She went on to clock-up 28 offences, mostly committed to fund her drug habit, which one ex-boyfriend claimed cost her £250,000 a year when they were together. 

Shea’s convictions include numerous thefts, plus burglary, having counterfeit currency, driving while unfit and she has breached non-custodial sentences such as drug rehabilitation requirements and community orders. 

In 2013, Tony took their three children to live with him and his new partner, Poppy Teacher, an Oxford graduate and great-great-granddaughter of the founder of the whisky dynasty. 

A year later, Jane was jailed for twelve months for stealing handbags from guests at private parties she infiltrated.

But it seems the relationship between the troubled pair has improved over the years.  

In a candid 2017 interview with The Times, Tony offered an update on Jane, saying she was ‘doing alright’, and adding: ‘A couple of years clean and sober, working a good programme, thank the Lord, and back in my children’s life.’

He said: ‘My 23-year-old son [by Jane] runs a pub in Marylebone, and he’s got an ex-crackhead, ex-alky mum and ex-alky dad, and he’s going to be all right.’ 

STUART AND CAROL PEARCE

SPLIT IN 2014 AFTER HE LEFT HER FOR AN FA EMPLOYEE

Former England defender Stuart ‘Psycho’ Pearce married wife Liz, the daughter of a Wiltshire pig farmer, in 1993 (pictured together) 

Former England defender and coach Stuart Pearce was nicknamed ‘Psycho’ during his career because of his uncompromising play, and his wife once said his ‘integrity and honesty are beyond doubt’. 

Pearce played more than 800 games – including 78 appearances for England – in a career that started at non-league Wealdstone.

In 2002 he embarked on a managerial career that included a spell as caretaker England manager last year when Fabio Capello resigned.

He married wife Liz, the daughter of a Wiltshire pig farmer, in 1993.

A non-traditional WAG, she was a keen horsewoman and kept former racehorses at stables close to the £1.8million family home near Marlborough, Wiltshire.

But in 2014, Liz was left devastated when Stuart left her after 20 years of marriage for Carol Day, an FA employee who once worked as a liaison officer for the WAGs (pictured together) 

She was credited with having sparked an interest in both the theatre and reading in her husband, who left school with five CSEs. 

But in 2014, Liz was left devastated when Stuart left her after 20 years of marriage for an FA employee who once worked as a liaison officer for the WAGs.

A close family friend said that he feared Pearce had suffered a ‘complete mid-life crisis’ after walking out on his wife and two children to be with FA employee Carol Day.

At the time, a friend said: ‘Stuart told his wife Liz last month that he was leaving and he immediately moved out of the family home.’

Carol was said to be shocked by his affair with Miss Day, who joined the Football Association in 1998 two years after completing a business administration and marketing degree at Brunel University.  

Pearce told his wife that the relationship started after the European Under-21 Championships in Israel, where England went out after losing all three group matches. 

However an unnamed Premier League star told The Sun at the time: ‘There has been a lot of chat about Carol and Pearce.

‘I think it’s been going on a lot longer than most people think. They used tospend a lot of time together.

According to her Linkedin page, Carol continues to work with her partner and is listed as his Business Operations Manager for the last seven years

‘The idea she is sneaking around with our old gaffer is just ridiculous.It’s like being back at school.’

And a family friend said: ‘Liz does not know if Stuart is telling the truth or if the affair had been going on longer,.’

Meanwhile Carol was Players Wives Liaison Officer at the 2002 World Cup held in Japan and South Korea – arranging accommodation and flights for wives and girlfriends. 

She also worked as operations manager for England’s junior teams – from Under-16 to Under-21. Pearce began managing the Under-21s in 2007.

Miss Day was also an organiser for the Great Britain football team at last year’s London Olympics – a team also managed by Pearce.

According to her Linkedin page, she has been working as Stuart’s Business Operations Manager for the last seven years.

Her roles includes ‘running day to day operations of Leadership and Motivational speaking company for ex-Professional Footballer, England International and Football Manager, Stuart Pearce.’

DARREN ANDERTON AND KERRY COLLINS

SPLIT IN 1996 BECAUSE HE DIDN’T WANT TO GET MARRIED  

Tottengham legend Darren Anderton was dating childhood sweetheart Kerry Collins during the 1996 Euros, but split from her shortly afterwards – quickly moving on to new girlfriend Kate Randall (pictured in 1998) 

Tottengham legend Darren Anderton was dating childhood sweetheart Kerry Collins during the 1996 Euros, but split from her shortly afterwards.

Then 24-year-old Darren said his decision not to get married had been behind the split in December 1996. Days later however, he moved new girlfriend Katie Randall into his home. 

He told The People: ‘Kate and I are very much together. Kerry and I just broke up. The thought of getting married was the problem. I wanted to go out with my friends and I wasn’t ready to settle down.

‘I just didn’t want to get married and that was why it ended. Kerry and I are still friends, though.’

They now live in California but still work in the UK and tend to keep a low profile. Darren also represented Spurs as a club ambassador for their 2018 US pre-season tour (pictured, attending Wimbledon in 2017)

Darren confirmed they were still living together in 2007, and the publicity-shy pair were snapped together at Wimbledon in 2017. 

They now live in California but still work in the UK. Darren also represented Spurs as a club ambassador for their 2018 US pre-season tour. 

In 2019, he was snapped on a wild stag do with friends in Marbella before marrying Kate in a lavish ceremony in luxury private member’s club Home House.

TEDDY SHERINGHAM AND NICOLA SMITH

SPLIT IN 2000 AFTER NICOLA STRUGGLED WITH PRESSURE OF WAG-LIFE 

Teddy Sheringham split from his long term girlfriend Nicola Smith in 2000, and she later tried to warn women off footballers – saying they would never be able to resist temptation around them

Sheringham had a fantastic playing career, working for big clubs such as Tottenham and Manchester United, for great managers like Brian Clough and Sir Alex Ferguson and winning the historic Treble with Manchester United in 1999.

An international trophy would have topped it off and England went agonisingly close in 1996 to the soundtrack of Three Lions.

At the time, he had been dating girlfriend Nicola Smith for four years. 

Just two years after the Euros, their relationship hit the rocks when photographs were published of Teddy caught in a clinch with a busty blonde in Portugal in 1998.

They managed to get back on track, and ended up getting engaged on New Year`s Eve 1999 after Teddy, popped the question. 

Sheringham quickly moved on, dating models including Danielle Lloyd (pictured together at the premiere for Casino Royale) 

At the time, she said: ‘We were together a hell of a long time. I thought he was The One, and I know he felt the same.’ 

However she found the pressure of life as a Wag – especially the part where complete strangers slipped their phone numbers into his pocket in front of her – unnerving. 

The couple had a furious bust-up over Teddy spending time with his son Charlie and ended up splitting in 2000.  

In 2010, she spoke out, saying footballers ‘shouldn’t marry’ to save themselves from public scandals because they aren’t able to resist the temptations laid before them.

Teddy finally settled down with wife Kristina Andriotis, with the couple marring in a lavish ceremony in the algarve in June 2016 

She told Manchester Evening News: ‘What I would say to them is: ‘look boys, don’t get married and have kids. Just enjoy it – go out and enjoy your life…

‘When I was with Teddy, there were girls who wouldn’t think twice about walking up to him and putting their telephone numbers in his pocket, even though I was sitting next to him.

‘You’ve got to be a tough cookie to deal with it.’ 

Sheringham quickly moved on, dating models including Danielle Llyod. However, the star settled down with Kristina Andriotis, a PR worker from Nottingham, in 2007, and two years later she moved into his Essex mansion. 

The couple’s home is named Camp Nou after the Barcelona stadium where Sheringham scored in the Champions League final in 1999. 

The former England striker tied the knot with Kristina, 30, in a ceremony in Portugal in 2016 after dating her for nearly 10 years. 

The couple were joined by family members and close friends for their wedding, where the bride wore a flowing backless dress while the groom donned a dark suit and silver tie.

But whose marriage HAS been a success? From Southgate’s ‘secret weapon’ wife to Shearer’s publicity shy partner 

GARETH AND ALISON SOUTHGATE 

The former player, 49, was in his early 20s and a trainee at Crystal Palace when he fell for Alison, a pretty boutique assistant almost four years his senior. 

They married in June 1997, in a low-key ceremony at his parents’ local church, carefully planned between World Cup and European Championship campaigns.

The pair have now been married for two decades and Southgate has credited Alison’s off-pitch support with keeping him grounded. 

The blonde former sales assistant is a constant supportive presence, but shuns the flashy WAG lifestyle and largely remains out of the spotlight to focus on their two children Mia, 21, and Flynn, 17.

Gareth Southgate, 49, has been married to Alison, 53, for more than 20 years and has credited her off-pitch support with keeping him grounded (Pictured: At Wimbledon in 2019)

Gareth has spoken openly about how time with his wife and their two children helps to keep him sane away from the pitch and his own experience has long inspired his ‘family first’ strategy with the team.

Describing, in his 2003 autobiography, how family life helps him overcome football disappointments, he comments: ‘On Saturday evening, our children are not too bothered whether Dad’s team have won or lost.

‘Neither does Alison fret too much about football, and this is how I like it. Regardless of the result, it is up to me to ensure that no one’s evening is ruined because of things that happened on a football field.

They married in June 1997, in a low-key ceremony at his parents’ local church, St Nicholas in Crawley, that was planned between World Cup and European Championship campaigns

‘The agonising waits until Alison and the kids are asleep.’

In 2017, he described how he was unwinding with his family ahead of preparing the England team for the world cup.

‘Over the last couple of weeks I’ve just had a nice time spending it with the family though, and for me that’s important because my kids are 18 and 14, and their development is as important for me as anything else in my life,’ he told the Evening Standard.

‘You do have to try to find a balance because my focus inevitably gets drawn towards making this team as successful as we can and driving them to be the best team in the world, but I’m also a dad and a husband.’

PAUL AND CLAIRE INCE  

Paul met childhood sweetheart Claire when they were at school, with the pair marrying in 1990 

Paul met his now-wife of 30 years Claire when they were at school, with the pair marrying in 1990. 

The now 53-year-old was first named England captain in 1993 against the USA in Foxboro, Massachusetts and he was the first black manager to wear the armband.

Ince represented his country 53 times, scoring twice, and retired from international football after England’s Euro 2000 exit.

The ex-midfielder started his career at West Ham United before moving to Manchester United, Inter Milan, Liverpool, Middlesbrough, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Swindon Town and Macclesfield Town.

He went on to become a manager with Blackburn, Macclesfield, Milton Keynes Dons and, most recently, Blackpool.

His son, Tom Ince, is an England U21 international who has played for Liverpool, Notts County, Blackpool and Crystal Palace.

In March 2018, it was reported Derby County are suing former chief executive Sam Rush for £6.8million as they examined the Rams’ transfer dealings.

High Court documents claimed the former Pride Park chief signed off paying Claire Ince £700,000 to help with scouting.

Meanwhile in 2019, the couple’s daughter was praised for being ‘lovely’ and ‘down to earth’ during her appearance on Channel 4’s Born Famous.

The couple have now been married for over 30 years, and are often snapped together at Premier League matches 

Ria, 17, from Cheshire, who spends her days horse riding in her ‘back garden’ swapped her luxury lifestyle for the streets of Dagenham, Essex, where her famous father grew up.

The former England captain said of his teenage daughter: ‘Ria from the day she was born never wanted for anything. My three kids I will always be financially supporting them, to try and give them the best opportunities in life to succeed in what their passion is.’

Her mum Claire said: ‘I would say that Paul’s relationship with Ria is very special. I would say me and the boys get left out sometimes.’

‘I want her to understand what it’s taken me and the limited choices that we had at my time. I’m hoping that she will see that,’ Paul added.

Viewers flocked to Twitter to gush over the student who admitted she”s lucky because she ‘never really had to go without anything’, saying she was a ‘credit to her parents’. 

ALAN AND LAINYA SHEARER 

Former England captain Alan Shearer met Lainya when he was playing for Southampton, and the pair got married in 1991

Former England captain Alan Shearer met Lainya when he was playing for Southampton, and the pair got married in 1991. 

The couple are still together, and now have three children; Hollie, Chloe, and Will. 

In a 1997 interview with NUFC fan magazine, he hinted at his love for the quiet life, saying: ‘We’re always together….I prefer going out for a meal, just me and my wife. A quiet meal. Sometimes with my friends (from Gosforth), I’ve got my family too. My Mum and Dad come in handy for baby-sitting.’

Since retiring from a career in football in 2006, the Newcastle native has made a career for himself in sports punditry alongside the likes of fellow former England star Gary Lineker at the BBC.

The couple are still together, and now have three children; Hollie, Chloe, and Will (pictured in December 2016, left to right, Hollie, Lainya, Alan, Will and Chloe)

During that time he had a brief hiatus from TV when he returned to Newcastle United as a manager but oversaw their relegation in 2009

In a 2018 interview with The Guardian, Match of the Day 2 presenter Mark Chapman appeared to hint at why Alan’s family might be so determined to stay out of the limelight, pointing to the abuse they receive online because of his own views as a pundit.

He said: ‘Like most pundits Alan takes the criticism in his stride, but it can be hard. I remember he did some analysis on Arsenal for Match of the Day 2 last season and the way the desk is built there is a shelf where you can put your phone. 

‘As I went to the next game, he picked his phone up from there and said: “I’ll just see how much abuse my wife and daughter are getting” because they’d got loads after he’d done something on Arsenal the week before. Is that where we are with pundits? It’s very weird.’

STEVE AND VICTORIA MCMANAMAN 

Steve met now-wife Victoria Edwards when she was just 18-years-old and he was 22, with the couple now splitting their time between Mallorca and London.

Steve met now-wife Victoria Edwards in a nightclub in Liverpool when she was just 18-years-old and he was 22.

The pair ‘fell head over heels in love’ before Steve was transferred in 1999 from Liverpool Football Club to Real Madrid.

Vicky, who was working as a barrister, moved with him, taking a job at Madrid University lecturing in English Law. 

She went on to set up a corporate entertainment company with a friend.

The couple married on 6 June 2002, in Mallorca’s Palma Cathedral.

Victoria gave birth to their daughters Ella in 2006 and Lara in 2009, and son Lucas James in 2012. 

The family now divides its time between homes in Bay of Palma, London and Cheshire.  

DAVID AND RACHEL PLATT 

Midfielder David Platt married married wife Rachel in 2000, with the pair travelling to the Seycelles for their honeymoon. They welcomed a son, Charlie in 2006

The ex-Arsenal, Juventus and Aston Villa midfielder, 49,is currently manager of FC Pune City in the Indian Super League and also appears as a pundit on Sky Sports.

Platt’s footballing career has spanned more than 30 years, starting as an apprentice at Manchester United and going on to play for major clubs both in the UK and abroad including Arsenal, Aston Villa, Bari, Juventus and Sampdoria. As well as this, he was captain of England, earning 62 caps in total.

He has also worked as a manager of Nottingham Forest and the England U21 team. 

He won the Premier League as assistant manager at Manchester City in 2012.

He married wife Rachel Vaughn in 2000, with the pair travelling to the Seycelles for their honeymoon. They welcomed a son, Charlie in 2006. The pair tend to stay out of the spotlight.  

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