England's Spence to wear protective mask at World Cup due to broken jaw

The Tottenham Hotspur player sustained the ⁠injury in a collision with Chelsea striker Liam Delap

By Reuters Published: 2026-06-09T13:09:00+04:00 1 min read
England's Spence to wear protective mask at World Cup due to broken jaw

England defender Djed Spence said ​he will have to play while ‌wearing ​a protective mask at the World Cup after suffering a broken jaw in a Premier League match last month.

The Tottenham Hotspur player sustained the ⁠injury in a collision with Chelsea striker Liam Delap and had to wear a mask in their final ‌match of the season against Everton.

"It's a little bit uncomfortable but it ‌is what it is," Spence told ‌reporters on Monday.

"I've got a broken ‌jaw so I ‌have to wear it throughout the tournament. It's something ​I will ‌have to ​get used to. ⁠It'll be three months until it's fully healed, so it's a long time."

Spence, ​who ⁠played to ⁠the end of the match against Chelsea, said he had not been worried ⁠that he might be sidelined due to the injury.

"It was painful but luckily I play football with my feet and not my jaw. So ‌I was all good," the 25-year-old added.

England open their ​World Cup campaign against Croatia in Dallas on June 17 before taking on Ghana and Panama.