London, May 24 (IANS): England fans will have specially composed prayers for their footballers during the World Cup.

Revered Nick Baines, of the Church of England, has composed three prayers that portrays god as a footballer who "played the cosmos into being".

"More people go to church than go to football matches. But football games are one of the few occasions when people have a collective experience in the same place at the same time," the bishop, a Liverpool team fan, was quoted as saying by The Daily Telegraph.

Baines had included a prayer for non-believers who see no sense of the sacred in the sport.

"More than half the population prays at some time and everyone will be affected by the World Cup in one way or another. So it makes sense to have some prayers for those that want to use them. This isn't just about football. It’s about the rainbow nations of the world celebrating together with the people of South Africa," he said.

World Cups are traditionally fertile recruiting periods for churches as nervous fans pray for the right result.

Many churches are expected to put up screens in halls, and even in the main part of the church, for congregations to watch matches.

Football World Cup will be played in South Africa from June 11 to July 11.