Roy Hodgson rejected Strictly Come Dancing offer after England resignation

Roy Hodgson has revealed he turned down an invitation to compete in Strictly Come Dancing following his resignation as England manager last summer.

The 69-year-old stepped down from his position immediately after the Three Lions were eliminated from Euro 2016 by Iceland and has not returned to management since.

The BBC approached the former Fulham and Liverpool manager ahead of the 13th series of the dancing competition - which launched in September last year - but Hodgson has no interest in "celebrity".

Hodgson told The Big Issue: "We are moving in a different world now, where celebrity is the key. I'd have been another Ed Balls!"

He continued: "I’ve never regarded myself as a celebrity, I have regarded myself as a professional football manager, a job which I have done for many years and think I do well.

“I’m quite proud of my achievements. But I don’t think that lifts me into the celebrity world.

“It has given me a life doing exactly what I wanted to do. But I don’t regard myself as any different to anybody else.

“I want to walk down streets, I want to leave Richmond by train, I don’t want to travel in a chauffeur-driven car.

"Because it’s not me, it’s not my background, it’s not where I came from. And it’s not what I could get used to.”

The national team return to action on Wednesday evening against Germany, almost a year to the day since one of the more memorable victories of Hodgson's tenure against the same opponents.Hodgson's tenure against the same opponents.

Gareth Southgate, Hodgson's second successor after sacked Sam Allardyce's 64-day reign, takes charge for the first time since being appointed on a permanent basis in November, having held the position in an interim basis during the Autumn.Hodgson's second successor after sacked Sam Allardyce's 64-day reign, takes charge for the first time since being appointed on a permanent basis in November, having held the position in an interim basis during the Autumn.