An age-old London underground station used by hundreds of people each day received a highly unusual ‘rebrand’ earlier this month in honour of a new-found football hero.

Southgate station in North London was renamed ‘Gareth Southgate’ for 48 hours between Monday 16 and Wednesday 18 July, in honour of the great success the England team enjoyed at this year’s World Cup under the manager’s watchful eye.

The team’s nail-biting climb to fourth place in this year’s tournament marked England’s most successful World Cup in almost three decades – and earned Southgate a surprise reputation as a national hero.

Football fans all across the country could be seen wearing ‘signature Southgate waistcoats’ all throughout the tournament, while street artists decided to silently ‘edit’ signposts throughout Southgate station long before Transport for London (TfL) moved to make the official change.

“The great performance of the England team this summer brought people of all ages together in celebration,” said Mark Wild, Managing Director of TfL.

“We’re delighted to be able to show our appreciation to Gareth and the team by renaming the station in his honour.”