FIFA World Cup 2022: who is Gareth Southgate’s wife Alison? Will she be at the Wales game tonight?

Gareth Southgate is in Qatar as the manager of England’s 26-man World Cup squad, which he handpicked.

The Three Lions will play Wales tonight at 7pm GMT in their last group game of the FIFA competition.

Southgate’s men must avoid a four-goal defeat against their fellow United Kingdom team in order to qualify for the round of 16. England could come top if they draw against the Welsh, and Iran fail to beat the USA.

The London-born football manager, 52, has been supported from afar by his wife Alison, who has not been spotted in Qatar.

So, who is Alison Southgate and how long has she been married to Gareth Southgate?

Who is Alison Southgate?

Alison is about four-years older than Gareth. Prior to meeting the football manager, she was working as a shop assistant.

How long have Gareth and Alison Southgate been married?

Gareth Southgate met then Alison Bird more than two decades ago, whilst he was playing for Crystal Palace.

At the time, Alison worked at a boutique which Gareth would visit. It took him two years to get the courage to ask her out, and unfortunately it was revealed that Alison was already in a relationship.

However, just a week later, Gareth bumped into Alison at a restaurant where she had just broken up with her then-boyfriend. He gave his number to Alison and asked her to call him.

Alison called Gareth later that night and they met up in the car park of the local Tesco. After many secret dates, the couple moved to Birmingham together when the defender was playing for Aston Villa.

They then tied the knot in July 1997 at St Nicholas’s Church in Worth, West Sussex.

A year later, they welcomed their first daughter Mia - who is now 23. They later welcomed a son, Flynn, who is now 18.

Alison remains out of the WAG spotlight and focuses on the children and family life. Her Instagram is set to private.

Gareth has also previously spoken about the importance of balancing family time and his successful career as England boss.

He told the Standard in 2017: "Over the last couple of weeks I’ve just had a nice time spending it with the family though, and for me that’s important because my kids are 18 and 14, and their development is as important for me as anything else in my life.

“You do have to try to find a balance because my focus inevitably gets drawn towards making this team as successful as we can and driving them to be the best team in the world, but I’m also a dad and a husband."

The Southgate family have been living in Alison’s hometown of Harrogate, North Yorkshire since the early 2000s.

They have owned many homes in and around the town, including a grand Victorian townhouse on the Duchy Estate and a £3.75 million country house.