Hacker flick 'fires up' England squad

As part of their preparation for the World Cup in Japan and Korea, England's footballers are being encouraged to watch specially selected DVDs - including panned hacker film Swordfish.

The England players have a DVD player in each of their rooms on the exclusive island retreat of Jeju and the John Travolta flick is listed alongside other products intended to get players 'fired up'.

Although the film was lambasted by the high-tech community for its laughable portrayal of the sexy and stylish high octane world of the modern hacker, it is presumably the fights, car chases and explosions - rather than the attention to technical detail - which secured it a place on the prestigious list.

Other tech toys taken to entertain the players in the Far East include computer games consoles - and of course games, including the questionable choice of David Beckham's own personally endorsed football game for the PlayStation.

However, with one particular England player blaming poor past performances on an addiction to video games, their inclusion is likely to raise a few eyebrows.