While most of their rivals are preparing for Euro 2008, England face the United States today already focusing on the start of the World Cup qualifying campaign later this year.
England were eliminated from the European finals last November and new manager Fabio Capello is using today's friendly in Wembley against the US, next Sunday's against Trinidad & Tobago and August's friendly against the Czech Republic as preparation for the start of the qualifiers in September.
Today's game against Capello's side is the first of three high-profile friendlies for US coach Bob Bradley's team who are also using the match as preparation for their own bid to reach the 2010 finals in South Africa.
They face Spain on June 4 in Santander and four days later take on Argentina at the Giants Stadium in New Jersey. They start their World Cup qualifying campaign against Barbados in California on June 15.
Today's match should also be significant for US striker Landon Donovan, who is poised to make his 100th appearance for the United States, just two months after his Los Angeles Galaxy team-mate David Beckham made his 100th appearance for England against France in Paris.
Donovan is one of three US-based players to make the squad for the game, which includes eight players with English clubs, including Tim Howard (Everton), Carlos Bocanegra, Clint Dempsey and Eddie Johnson (Fulham), Jonathan Spector (West Ham), Benny Feilhaber and Eddie Lewis (Derby County).
Capello, who will be in charge of England for the third time after an opening 2-1 win against Switzerland in February and a 1-0 defeat by France in Paris two months ago, said on Sunday that he believed he could take England all the way to the World Cup final in 2010.
He believes that England, who provided both clubs for the Champions League final between Manchester United and Chelsea last week, have enough talent to challenge for the world title. He may rest some of the eight players who appeared in the Moscow match which United won after a penalty shoot-out, however.
Owen Hargreaves, who was on the winning side for United last week, told a news conference at the England team hotel on Monday that the Chelsea and United players were old friends and had far too much respect for each other to let their club rivalry affect their preparations for the England matches.
"There are no ill-feelings towards each other, we are all friends," he said. "We've known each other for such a long time and spent so much time with each other away and at major tournaments, there is a great amount of mutual respect."
Today's match is the ninth meeting between the countries with England winning six and the US twice: the first being their famous 1-0 win at Belo Horizonte in the 1950 World Cup finals in Brazil, one of soccer's greatest upsets.