Mason Greenwood gives up on England recall as FA chief shares details on switch

Mason Greenwood has formally applied to switch international allegiances from England to Jamaica, with the former Manchester United striker having made just one appearance for the Three Lions

Mason Greenwood will switch his international allegiance to Jamaica after the Football Association (FA) confirmed he has “asked to switch”.

Greenwood made one senior appearance for England back in 2020, coming on as a substitute in a 1-0 win over Iceland in the Nations League. However, he and Phil Foden were subsequently dropped from the squad after breaking Covid rules by allegedly inviting two women into the team hotel.

Greenwood was not considered for selection by former England boss Gareth Southgate after he was arrested on suspicion of attempted rape, assault occasioning actual bodily harm and controlling and coercive behaviour in January 2022.

The charges were ultimately dropped in February 2023 before the case went to trial. Greenwood left Manchester United that summer, first joining Getafe on loan before sealing a permanent move to Marseille last summer.

However, there is no chance of him playing for England again, with FA chief executive Mark Bullingham revealing that the Marseille striker has formally applied to switch allegiances. “So my understanding, and I’d have to double check my understanding, is he’s asked to switch,” Bullingham said.

“That’s happened formally, so he wouldn’t be able to because you can only switch once. I know people asked Gareth about him and Gareth was up front in that he hadn’t been in his thinking, because he hadn’t been performing at that level, so I’m not aware of any communication we had with him.

“I don’t think there was ever a request or anything like that. It just wasn’t one we got to, so it’s a personal decision by him.”

Greenwood is eligible to represent Jamaica through his parents and has been in good form since joining Marseille from Manchester United last summer. The 23-year-old has scored 16 goals in 26 games across all competitions for the Ligue 1 outfit.

Jamaica, meanwhile, are hoping to qualify for the 2026 World Cup and are currently managed by former England boss Steve McClaren. They also have a number of current and former Premier League players in their ranks, including Michail Antonio, Bobby De Cordova-Reid, Omari Hutchinson, Demarai Gray and Ravel Morrison.

Jamaica have only appeared at one World Cup before, featuring at the 1998 tournament in France. However, they were knocked out in the group stage after defeats to Croatia and Argentina and a win over Japan.

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