Prediction in favour of English players (8)
I believe the answer is:
forecast
'prediction' is the definition.
(I know that forecast is a type of prediction)
'in favour of english players' is the wordplay.
'in favour of' becomes 'for' (being for a particular cause).
'english' becomes 'e' (abbreviation).
'players' becomes 'cast' (group of actors).
'for'+'e'+'cast'='FORECAST'
(Other definitions for forecast that I've seen before include "Predict as with weather" , "Expect" , "Predict (event)" , "Prophecy" , "Meteorological surmise perhaps" .)