World Cup 2023: Drusillas Zoo Park meerkats predict win for England

The so-called “mystic” meerkats at Drusillas Zoo Park near Alfriston have correctly predicted the last two World Cup results for the Lionesses’ games against Nigeria and Colombia and are now going for a hat trick.

To predict the results, the meerkats are presented with two buckets of treats, each with a team’s flag on.

The buckets are put in their enclosure and the meerkats are released and left to choose which bucket they prefer to eat from.

Whichever bucket the most meerkats flock to is declared the predicted winner.

The meerkats have been predicting football results since 2021 and last year the mob correctly predicted the England women’s results all the way to the Euro 2022 finals when the Lionesses brought it home. The zookeepers at Drusillas are hoping their tradition will bring England luck once again.

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The activity forms part of the zoo’s daily enrichment programme which “makes sure all the animals enjoy a diverse diet in imaginative and unusual ways”.

Activities encourage them to think and work for their food as they would in the wild. It has now become a bit of a tradition at the zoo and the meerkats run over excitedly when they see the buckets.

Claudia Farley, zoo section leader, said: “Whether you are superstitious or not, the meerkats have a pretty impressive track record with their predictions so maybe they know something we don’t.

“It’s now become a tradition here at the zoo and this year even our new baby Reggie, who is only a couple of months old, was in on the action too. We are big football fans here and are so proud of our Lionesses so it would be amazing for England to win as the meerkats have predicted.

“They seemed very confident in their decision today, with almost all of the meerkats scrambling to get in the England bucket – it’s amazing how many of them can fit in there, and there were lots of little tails and rear ends poking out the top.”