Former US men’s national team defender Alexi Lalas sparked a social media frenzy after calling British comedian and television host James Corden a “f—–g w—-r” during a live Fox Sports broadcast covering the FIFA Club World Cup.
The unscripted moment occurred during a panel discussion featuring Lalas, Thierry Henry, Zlatan Ibrahimovichand host Rebecca Lowe. The exchange immediately caught viewers’ attention and spread rapidly across social media platforms.
Throughout the competition, Corden’s program will air at midnight ET every night until July 15.
Corden previously hosted The Late Late Show before signing off in 2023.
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“What do you guys call him, a f—–g w—-r?”
The moment occurred shortly after Fox After Hours’ tournament coverage featured an advertisement for English comedian Corden’s new program, FIFA World Cup.
“Can we talk about James Corden for a second?” asked British host Rebecca Lowe, shifting the discussion to the panel.
“What do you guys call him, a f—–g w—-r?” retorted Lalas, a former American soccer player.
The response came right away, while fellow pundits Zlatan Ibrahimović, a legendary Swedish player, and Thierry Henry, a former France legend, were in disbelief, and Lowe appeared stunned.
Lalas went on, “He’s all dressed up and ready to go.”
Henry said, “Wow.” “Did he just say that?”
“Okay, lucky we’re on American television because the w-word on British television?” Lowe interjected, shaking her head and chuckling.
To dissipate the tension, Lowe asked her co-panelists whether he was going to “visit James” and they all agreed.
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“THIERRY HENRY’S FACE IS PRICELESS”
A clip shared online quickly accumulated thousands of views. One widely circulated post highlighted Henry’s expression immediately after the remark, with users describing it as “priceless.”
Men in Blazers on X wrote, “THIERRY HENRY’S FACE IS PRICELESS 🤣 You couldn’t get away with that on UK television…”
Some users are mocking the word “w—-r” and calling it the “funniest insult.” Simon Tanner, a user on X, wrote below the clip, “Wanker is actually the funniest insult in the English language. Somehow hearing it once you know exactly what it means.”
Another user wrote, “W—-r is fine to use on TV in the UK. The big no-no is ‘cu*t’.
Thierry Henry, on the other hand, stole the show with an unmistakable face of surprise. A user of X created a sticker image of his expression and wrote, “Thierry was bamboozled lmao.”
