LONDON, 22 June — Millions of England fans ready for one of the biggest parties of their lives instead trooped despondently away from clubs and squares yesterday after Brazil’s ‘samba’ stars shattered their World Cup dream.

“The world has just caved in,” said building worker Don Jacobs, 26, as he and thousands of others left London’s Trafalgar Square where the match was shown on a giant screen.

“We just weren’t good enough, let’s be honest.”

A roar went up across the land when Michael Owen put England 1-0 up in Shizuoka after 23 minutes. But jubilation turned to despair as first Rivaldo equalized and then Ronaldinho hit the winner with a bizarre — or brilliant — long-range free-kick.

“It’s too much, I can’t take it,” said student Rebecca Langfield, 19, wiping tears from her face with a stained red-and-white flag of England’s patron Saint George.

“It’s a tragedy. There is no other word for it...I really thought we would beat them and then win the World Cup.”

After surviving the first-round “Group of Death” — where they eliminated archrivals Argentina — and then breezing past Denmark to reach the quarterfinals, England fans had finally dared to believe their team could bring the trophy home to soccer’s birthplace for only the second time.

Football fever had gripped the nation, with many styling their hair after captain David Beckham.

Declaring an unofficial “people’s holiday”, about 10 million stayed away from work yesterday to watch the game in Japan, which was broadcast at breakfast time in England.

Half-way between Britain and Japan, British troops in dusty Afghanistan watched the game live and shared the pain. “We probably lost to the eventual winners of the cup,” said Captain Ken Sorungbe in Kabul. “And at least we beat Argentina.”

Back in England, schools had special showings for children. And many fans just watched in bed, with little enthusiasm for work afterward.

“Who cares what the boss says? He’s human, he’s suffering too, he’ll understand,” said David Taylor as headed home — instead of to the bank where he was supposed to be working — after watching the game with friends in London.

While there was little consolation for England fans in the immediate aftermath, at least they went out to the popular Brazilians rather than deadly rivals Argentina or Germany.

And the manner of yesterday’s defeat was slightly less painful than going out on penalties to Argentina in the 1998 World Cup.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair tried to rouse spirits after watching the match in Spain.

“We are all devastated,” he told reporters on the sidelines of a European Union summit. “But before we went into the tournament who would ever have though we would have come this far?...We can be very, very proud of our team.”

Psychologists warned that the “feel-good” factor sweeping England since they beat Argentina exactly two weeks ago would now turn to feelings of loss and mourning.

England last won the tournament in 1966 and this was their biggest game since they lost to Germany in the 1990 semifinal.

But history was against the English. They have never beaten Brazil in a World Cup and on the three previous times they have met at the finals, Brazil have gone on to win the trophy.

There were no reports of violence after the game. London’s Brazilian community enjoyed the match in style, many watching the match with English fans.