Four football-mad friends whose World Cup dreams were crushed when they realised tickets had sold out will watch the final in Mexico instead ... where it took place 24 years ago.

The close-knit pals had been planning a once-in-a-lifetime trip for four years and watched all five home qualifying games to buy tickets to the matches.

But then they learned all tickets had gone for the holiday in South Africa, organised to celebrate the group of four friends’ 50th birthdays.

They were gutted, so, together with their wives who had offered to pay in exchange for some peace and quiet, they hatched a back-up plan.

Father-of-two Dennis Meszaros, 50, of Hardwick Drive, said: "We were so annoyed when we found out tickets had gone.

"Ever since the last World Cup we had been planning this because we all knew we would be turning 50 then.

"We went to all of England’s games, which you needed to do to get enough points to buy tickets, and are members of the FA and FIFA.

"We’re football mad.

"All of our wives were paying for it and we couldn’t wait.

"So after getting over being gutted about not going to the World Cup, we decided to fly out to Mexico and enjoy it there instead."

Dennis will be joined by his friends of more than 30 years, new grandfather Graham Burgess, 50, of Peter Street, electrician Jed Singleton, 50, of Brock Street, and father-of-three Kev Wilshaw, 49, of Chestnut Avenue, Hurdsfield.

The group will cover themselves in red and white for the two-week trip as they follow England in a sun-drenched beach resort.

And the friends will be filming the trip ready to upload to internet video website YouTube and for a possible special screening in the men’s meeting place, the Bruce Arms, on Crompton Road.

Dennis added: "It would have been nice to go to the World Cup, but this is going to be just as much fun.

"Now we can’t wait, the wives get a bit of peace and quiet and we get to go away."