Champagne bottle signed by 1966 World Cup winners to be auctioned

The bottle is signed by eight of England's 1966 World Cup winners

England fans will have the chance to commiserate Wednesday's World Cup exit when a champagne bottle signed by the 1966 winning team is auctioned.

The first of 1,966 produced, the bottle is signed by eight of the victorious England side, including Sir Geoff Hurst who scored a hat-trick in the final.

The 38cm-tall bottle will go under the hammer at Humbert & Ellis Auctioneers in Northamptonshire on 2 August.

It is expected to sell for between £3,000 and £4,000.

England, who hosted the 1966 tournament, beat West Germany 4-2 after extra-time in the final at Wembley Stadium to record their only major honour to date.

Bobby Moore captained England to World Cup glory in 1966

The limited edition bottle, which has been in private ownership for several years, is also signed by Sir Bobby Charlton, Nobby Stiles, Gordon Banks, Martin Peters and George Cohen.

The signatures of Ray Wilson, who died in May, and Alan Ball, who died in 2007, also feature on the bottle.

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Auctioneer Jonathan Humbert said: "The vendor thought it was the right time to sell given the global interest in the World Cup.

"Given the result with Croatia this is now a bottle to commiserate with rather than celebrate."

The bottle is expected to sell for between £3,000 and £4,000