Sports Team have released a new song, ‘Happy (God’s Own Country’) – watch the video for the new single below.

A press release from the group describes the new single, which they teased in a social media post yesterday (April 20), as “a summer-of-hope-anthem” that “celebrate[s] the easing of lockdown measures”.

The new song’s accompanying video is a satirical take on The Wicker Man.

Speaking about the track, the group added: “We recorded this at the end of last year at a time when it was hard not to feel exhausted by the scale of insincerity everywhere.

“It’s a sort of Cold War Steve collage, a cut and paste diorama of cronyism, cottagecore and window-dressed Toryism, with the frustrated energy of live performance without a stage.”

Last month, the group announced details of a new B-sides and rarities vinyl being sold exclusively through independent retailers.

‘Plant Test’ features music from 2016 to 2021, including unmastered new material following on from the band’s 2020 debut album ‘Deep Down Happy’. ‘Happy (God’s Own Country)’ is the first song taken from the project and their first new music since the release of their first album.

The group also announced details of their rescheduled tour dates, which will take place across the UK and Ireland this October and November. You can see a full list of the ‘Red Hot Rock Show’ dates below.

Sports Team Rescheduled Tour Dates 2021

OCTOBER
1 – O2 Academy, Liverpool
2 – Manchester Academy, Manchester
26 – SWG3, Glasgow

NOVEMBER
17 – Rock City, Nottingham
18 – Leeds University Stylus, Leeds
21 – Whelan’s, Dublin
23 – SWX, Bristol
25 – O2 Academy Brixton, London

Reviewing the band’s debut LP, NME wrote: “You can find Rice and his sidekick Rob Knaggs either charmingly or irritatingly gobby, and the joy lies in the tribalism that’s inherent to Sports Team’s approach.

“After a listen of ‘Deep Down Happy’, you’re left in absolutely no doubt as to what the six-piece stand against and this unabashed straightforwardness and refusal to bend makes them a unique prospect.”