Jamaica told Mason Greenwood 'bigger than football' decision needs 'acceptance from the nation' as Marseille forward backed to help Steve McClaren's side book World Cup spot if England switch becomes reality

The Reggae Boyz have a green light from FIFA when it comes to adding former Manchester United forward Greenwood to their ranks. The one-cap England international is ready to pledge allegiance to the Caribbean nation.

No official switch has been announced as yet, despite 2026 World Cup qualifying being well underway, with ex-United coach and England boss Steve McClaren still waiting to discover whether the 23-year-old - who has been starring in France for Marseille - will join his ranks.

There are several factors to be taken into consideration when it comes to Greenwood - not just his sporting ability. He saw all charges in a case relating to allegations of attempted rape, assault and coercive and controlling behaviour dropped in February 2023.

Quizzed on whether Jamaica will want to get Greenwood registered as soon as possible, former Reggae Boyz star Frank Sinclair - speaking in association with William Hill - told GOAL: "It’s a really difficult one. An obvious football answer would be, absolutely. Because of what he brings as a footballer, he makes this Jamaica squad a lot stronger. But, it’s deeper than that. There are a lot of people that don’t feel the same way about him as a person.

"It depends on what Jamaica and Steve McClaren want to do in creating a culture in the international squad. It’s a hard one to answer. From a football sense, yeah, of course you want Mason Greenwood in your squad because he gives you a greater opportunity of qualifying for the World Cup.

"At the same time, there are things in the world that are bigger than football and it’s a difficult question to answer. It would have to be acceptance from the nation, from the players, from the staff, 100 per cent backing him because there are going to be a lot of people that are going to be trying to dig holes and put him in them. It’s not a case of here’s your dual passport, you can play for Jamaica now. There is a lot more that comes with representing Jamaica.

"I was in the second batch of English-based players that joined the national squad and it wasn’t just about football for me. My decision behind playing for Jamaica was twofold. One was, I felt like there wasn’t going to be an opportunity to play for England, because of where I was at at the time and the football I was playing, winning trophies etc, I thought that if I was ever going to play for England it would have been now.

"The second was to support the nation in trying to help players get out of the nation and play all over Europe. That was a big thing for me because we had to get that exposure to the national team to help the Jamaica-based players start to achieve. That was the expectation of the squad, as well as improving the squad going to the 1998 World Cup."

Asked if Greenwood could become a game-changer for a Jamaica side that has not qualified for the World Cup since 1998, Sinclair added: "Absolutely, there is no doubt about that. There are a lot of good players available to play for Jamaica that have not been involved yet.

"I know that the Jamaican federation are scouring the English leagues now looking for the next talent, trying to talk players into taking their future with that federation. I’m very close to Trevor Sinclair, I was with him last weekend, who is obviously one of McClaren’s assistants. We talk all the time about the players that are available, that can play for Jamaica. If you can get them all, that squad is frightening - with the future of the players that are coming through.

"But, again, it’s one that I’m a little bit sitting on the fence with because I know about the other side of it that isn’t football related."

Greenwood made his solitary appearance for England at senior level in a Nations League meeting with Iceland in September 2020. He is eligible to represent Jamaica through his father.