England goalkeeper Chris Gordon to face father Colin as Argentina host Powerchair World Cup match

England goalkeeper Chris Gordon will face his father, Colin Gordon, when England meet hosts Argentina in Buenos Aires on Sunday at the Powerchair Football World Cup; Colin is coaching Argentina while Chris plays for England.

"I was a big football fan growing up. My dad got involved with powerchair football through me," England goalkeeper Chris Gordon says. "But he's now coaching Argentina, so we'll be facing each other in the World Cup." For Gordon Jr, who is playing at his fourth Powerchair Football World Cup for England, the Sunday's meeting carries extra personal significance with his father in the opposite dugout.

Colin Gordon is a former professional striker who played for Birmingham City, Fulham and Leicester City in the 1980s and 90s and later became a football agent. "My dad and I have worked together at West Brom for a number of years and then he coached me for the England national team," Chris said of their working relationship.

At the previous World Cup in 2023 Colin managed England to the final, where they lost on penalties against France. Chris, a Kidderminster resident, said: "England will definitely come out on top [against Argentina], so bragging rights will be coming my way," after reflecting on that run.

Powerchair football, also known as power football or wheelchair football, is a four-a-side sport played by people with impairments including muscular dystrophy, cerebral palsy and spinal muscular atrophy. The game requires a basketball court, a larger football and powerchairs fitted with front bumpers that allow players to shoot, pass and dribble the ball.

Over the next week 10 teams will compete, ranging from hosts Argentina and neighbours Uruguay to Australia and Japan. Games begin on Saturday, the final is scheduled for Friday 23 October, and all matches will be streamed live on YouTube. England are listed among the favourites alongside France and the USA, and the squad has expressed optimism about its chances.

The England team mixes youth and experience: Dan McLellan, 17, is preparing for his second World Cup and recently took over the captaincy of his club side Aspire PFC from Jon Bolding, who is heading to his fifth World Cup. Bolding said: "I've been playing powerchair football for 25 years now. Back in the day, we used to use our NHS wheelchair and just put car tyres round the front." He added: "I've been playing since I was eight years old. I got into the [England] squad at 14," and: "It's not every 17-year-old that gets to two major tournaments, but I try to maintain my level and improve on it. "We believe in ourselves to get to that final. We've got enough to do it this time," he said. Bolding added: "It would mean so much to bring [the World Cup] home for England. We've been trying for so many years now. We won the Euros in 2019; this is the only thing that we're missing."

Head coach Adam McEvoy, who has led the England powerchair team since 2024, said: "I'm really looking forward to this World Cup to showcase how we play, who we are, and our style of football [but] it's going to be the toughest World Cup there has been so far." He added: "With the group that we have and the way that we try and play, there's no reason we can't go very deep into the competition." England's next confirmed fixture is the Sunday match against hosts Argentina in Buenos Aires.