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Baddiel, Skinner & Lightning Seeds mark 30 years of ‘Three Lions’ with new re-release
Baddiel, Skinner & Lightning Seeds are reissuing ‘Three Lions’ for its 30th anniversary ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
Baddiel, Skinner & Lightning Seeds are bringing back “Three Lions” for its 30th anniversary, with the re-release landing on June 12 as England heads into another World Cup summer.
The timing is hardly subtle. Three decades after David Baddiel and Frank Skinner teamed with The Lightning Seeds to write the song for England’s Euro 96 campaign, the track returns as a piece of football-pop heritage that has long outlived the tournament it was written for. You can pre-order it here.
What started as a one-off cultural punt became something much bigger, and much stranger: the only song ever to reach UK Number One on four separate occasions with the same artist. It first hit the top twice in 1996, returned there for three straight weeks during the 1998 World Cup, and then did it again in 2018, when it jumped from Number 24 to Number One in a single week.
The new edition is framed as a 30-year celebration of the original release, but it also sits neatly inside the song’s long habit of resurfacing whenever England’s tournament cycle rolls around. This time, the reissue is set up for the 2026 World Cup, which runs from June 11 to July 19 and is being co-hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
‘Three Lions’ 2026 cover artwork. CREDIT: David Squires
That anniversary release comes with new illustrated artwork by Guardian cartoonist David Squires, while the vinyl edition includes a handful of variations: a ‘Remastered’ version, a ‘Karaoke’ version, the ‘Jules Rimet Extended Mix’, and the ‘Sake Bar Remix’.
This is not the first time Baddiel, Skinner & Lightning Seeds have revisited the song. After the original 1996 release, they issued ‘Three Lions ‘98’, which folded in audio from the Euro 96 crowds singing along in stadiums. In 2022, they also put out ‘It’s Coming Home For Christmas’ ahead of the World Cup in Qatar, adding festive bells and updating the lyric sheet to nod to the Lionesses after their Euros win that year.
Elsewhere in the song’s wider afterlife, Robbie Williams led a charity remake in 2010 with Russell Brand for that year’s World Cup, releasing it under the name The Squad.
The Lightning Seeds also have a busy summer ahead, with tour dates alongside Deacon Blue and a slate of festival appearances. Visit here for tickets and more information.
