From delirium to despondency, the England fan experience has been a varied one at Euro 2024. The team is responsible for some of the competition’s most memorable moments, including several last-minute winners, as well as a few less enthralling bloopers.
Complaints aside, there is a lot for fans to celebrate: this is England’s second consecutive Euros final, after their 2021 defeat against Italy at Wembley, and the team’s first major tournament final overseas.
In the run-up to the final on Sunday, we spoke to five England supporters about their thoughts on the tournament so far and how they plan to watch the showdown against Spain.
‘I’m expecting a close game’
“I’m quite excited now,” says Jon Seal, 46. “I was less excited at the beginning of the tournament.”
Seal, a scientist from London, has travelled with his friend Karl to every England game in the tournament as a member of the England Supporters Club. “The general atmosphere has been good and Germany has been engaged – although I feel the country put more effort into their 2006 World Cup. Some grounds have been better organised than others.”
The pair have been regularly watching major tournaments together since Euro 1996.
“He’s more excited than me,” Seal says. “I think we’re likely to lose, but England probably still has the best collection of individuals. And it’s not like these finals come around too often. I was at the England-Italy final of the last Euros at Wembley, which didn’t go our way. That was gutting. So, we’ll see. I’m expecting a good atmosphere and a close game.”
‘I’d be happy for Southgate because he’s suffered a lot’
Cristina Gay, 63, is Italian-German, lives in Belgium and usually supports all three countries. “But I’m supporting England in the final,” she says.
“I’d be happy for Southgate if they won because he’s suffered a lot. People are so negative about managers. I don’t like when they trash them.”
Gay works as an assistant at a German radio station, where not all of her co-workers share her faith in England. “I was telling all my colleagues that England would win this year. And they said, no, it’s certainly going to be Germany. I have no rational explanation for the way England played in the beginning, which was horrible. But so did Belgium – and I don’t even want to talk about Italy.”
She will be watching the final with her son, daughter and son-in-law – all of whom will be backing Spain. “They feel it’s more fair for Spain to win because they have played so well.”
She is considering venturing into Brussels city centre for the game, where there are “lots of English pubs”, she says. “I think it’ll be worth it, to see what the atmosphere is like.
“It’s going to be, I think, a fantastic game.”
‘2-0 England. I think we’re peaking at the right time’
Jordi Fens, 28, a crown servant from London, will be at the Brandenburg Gate fan zone in Berlin for the final kick-off, after travelling from Leipzig. He has been in Germany since the start of the tournament. “I’ve had a phenomenal month out here,” he says. “It feels like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
Fens witnessed first-hand Jude Bellingham’s late equaliser against Slovakia. “I couldn’t believe it. I was sitting next to a Swiss fan who I hadn’t shared a word with for the whole 95 minutes, out of nervousness. He embraced me after Bellingham put the ball in, and that’s what brought me back to earth. That was a real moment.”
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As for his score prediction for the final, Fens is bullish. “2-0 England. I think we’re peaking at the right time.”
‘It’s what I’m thinking about at every waking moment’
Rob, 29, is watching the final from a pub in Kirkstall, Leeds, with friends. “They’ve recently got a big screen. We’re heading down there with loads of camping chairs for the beer garden – it’s got the best atmosphere ever.”
Rob, who works as a curator in Leeds, had “one of the best experiences” of his life watching the Euros in Germany this summer. Along with a group of school friends from Halifax, he travelled by train – from Leeds to London, on to Brussels by Eurostar, and finally the sleeper train to Berlin.
“Watching the sunset on the train through Amsterdam with your old school mates on your way to the Euros … how can that be beaten? Now we’re all about 30 we don’t often meet up.”
The group, which was made up of England and Scotland fans, watched two matches in Germany: Netherlands v Austria and Czech Republic v Turkey. “We decided to just pick a team to support – I love the history of Dutch football. We all bought Holland shirts and met up with a bunch of fans,” he said, adding that he had been “blown away” by the Turkish midfielder Arda Güler.
Rob had missed out on seeing England at the Euro 2020 final against Italy after his brother got Covid the day before. “I’m a huge football fan – it’s what I’m thinking about at every waking moment right now. This time, I’m going to just chill with my best mates, enjoy it – and not try to make it a big thing.”
‘It’s heartwarming to see opposing fans getting on’
At the matches she went to in Germany, Karyn McGowan, 56, was pleased to see a friendly atmosphere in the crowds. “The fans and atmosphere were great. In such a divisive world it was heartwarming to see so many opposing teams’ fans getting on so well,” the workplaces services manager from Glasgow said. “I don’t know whether it’s just because things are shitty all over the world, but from what I saw, it seemed like people were making an effort to talk to people from different countries.”
She said the trains let the experience down, though. “There were too many people, but that shouldn’t have been a surprise – it felt like they hadn’t made changes to timetables. They were all delayed. At some point, Scottish fans were singing: ‘You’re just Scotrail in disguise’.”
McGowan, who will be watching the final at home with her mother and sons, is supporting England in the final. “My husband’s English and I’ve lived there – I have a wee soft spot for them. My sons are half English, but really completely Scottish – they want Spain to win.”