ATLANTA — England manager Thomas Tuchel said journalists ask about striker Harry Kane at every news conference. Tuchel described Kane as the team’s leader and captain who decides matches, leads by example, is in the best shape of his career and is ready to take responsibility. He called it a privilege to have Kane as captain and to be his coach.
It has become almost taken for granted that Kane wears the armband. He has skippered England into the last five major tournaments and will lead the side out in a World Cup semifinal for a second time on Wednesday night.
When Gareth Southgate picked Kane as captain for the 2018 World Cup, the choice was contentious. Kane did not fit the traditional image of an England captain: he was the team’s primary goal scorer and its best player, but was seen as politely spoken and thoughtful rather than embodying the old-fashioned “bulldog” spirit.
The symbolism of the England captaincy has shifted over time. Paul Hayward, in England Football — The Biography, wrote that the English fixation with armbands and rallying cries was a 20th-century phenomenon and that in the 19th century the captaincy was largely ceremonial. Hayward noted there were 125 captains from 1872 to Euro 2020 and that figures such as Billy Wright and Bobby Moore elevated the role to that of statesman.
Before Kane led England out against Croatia in the 2018 World Cup semifinal, the previous two men’s captains to receive that particular honor were Bobby Moore and Terry Butcher. Moore is remembered for lifting the 1966 Jules Rimet Trophy; Sir Alf Ramsey praised him as the spirit and heartbeat of the team and called him the supreme professional. In 1990, with Bryan Robson injured, Butcher led England out against West Germany, fitting the more combative captain archetype that had persisted in earlier decades.
When Southgate prepared for his first major tournament in charge in 2018, the main contenders for the armband were Kane, Gary Cahill and Jordan Henderson. Southgate had rotated captains previously; Wayne Rooney had captained England into Euro 2016 but was nearing the end of his international career, Cahill’s place was not guaranteed, and Southgate wrote in his book Dear England that Henderson was struggling for fitness heading into the World Cup.
