England manager Roy Hodgson has urged his players to sing the national anthem at this summer's World Cup.

The Three Lions kick off their tournament against Italy on June 14 and Hodgson is keen for his squad to show how proud they are to play for the country.

"You very rarely play against opponents and they haven't got their hands on their hearts and singing their anthem as loud as they can," BBC Sport quotes him as saying. "We made the decision very early on to do what every other team does."

"We are proud to be England players and, in my case, England manager, so when the national anthem comes up it's an obvious one for me that we sing it.

"Perhaps we need to remind the players as the squad has changed so much. If they all sing it, I don't know. It's not something I've checked on. But I hope they will."

England continue their World Cup preparations with a friendly against Ecuador in Miami on Wednesday.