I'm A Celeb: 'Ant and Dec are Newcastle, I'm Sunderland' - Jill Scott

Sunderland-born Jill Scott celebrates with her winners' medal at the Euro 2022 final

Former England footballer Jill Scott has joked that I'm A Celebrity presenters Ant and Dec might not like her background playing at Sunderland.

Ex-midfielder Scott, part of the Euro 2022-winning team before her retirement in the summer, is set to enter the ITV reality show on Sunday.

"I haven't met Ant and Dec before but they are Newcastle fans, and I am Sunderland," the 35-year-old said.

"I don't know if it will go down too well."

The popular TV presenters - Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly - are familiar faces at St James' Park and amongst the Magpies' most famous fans.

Ant and Dec with Newcastle United's Matt Targett at St James' Park in May

But the Geordie duo are not the only Newcastle supporters heading to Australia, where the show will be filmed following two years in Wales due to Covid.

Campmate and former health secretary Matt Hancock - who resigned for breaching social distancing guidance - is also a Magpies fan.

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During the pandemic the distinctive black and white stripes of a Newcastle United shirt could be seen during interviews he did from his home.

His love of Newcastle stems from his uncle being a Geordie, as he revealed to the Northern Echo in 2020.

Hancock has been suspended as a Conservative MP after announcing his appearance on the show.

Matt Hancock gave interviews in front of a signed Newcastle United shirt during the pandemic

World Cup hopes

Sunderland-born Scott, who also had spells at Everton and Manchester City, started her senior footballing career on Wearside, and is a former Monkwearmouth Comprehensive School student.

She hopes that England's men will still be in the Fifa World Cup in Qatar when she emerges from the jungle Down Under.

• BBC Sounds - Jill Scott’s Coffee Club - Available Episodes

"I am going to find it weird not being able to know how the men are getting on in the tournament," she said.

Scott said she "loves being part of a team" and hopes her fellow I'm A Celebrity contestants can "create a good camp" in the jungle.

"I am not going in to win. I am going in to have a good time," she added.

"I am the type of person who is very happy for people who do well and it doesn't necessarily have to be me."