Excitement In The Air: 22million To Watch Large England-Germany Clash At Euro 2020
England’s army of followers will flock to pubs in their droves tonight to watch the integral clash in opposition to Germany, with a mixture of excitement and trepidation.
Excitement knowing if Gareth Southgate’s men can overcome our fierce rivals, the course to Euro 2020 glory would be made a little easier.
And trepidation over the possibility the game could go to penalties after a draw – given our poor record in opposition to the Germans in shoot-outs.
But this young crew will not be weighed down by history, Southgate insisted, as the country rallies behind them, along with fans at Wembley, in a bid to break the hoodoo. Bars, restaurants and beer gardens are being decked with England flags for the last-16 suit at 5pm – with many bosses permitting staff to leave work early for it.
Landlords will be hoping for bumper takings after a yr of closures at some stage in the pandemic that has battered the industry.
A TV audience of round 22 million, the largest of the year so far, will be watching and tens of thousands more are anticipated to be in fanzones, with massive screens in Newcastle, Manchester, and Birmingham.
Rick Robinson is landlord of the Willoughby Arms in Kingston, South West London, and has one hundred sixty clients booked in to see the action. He said: “It is a splendid atmosphere for England games.
“If England do win, I hope people will make a good night of it. If it goes to extra time and penalties then they should be here till round 8pm. If they lose I could be in bed via 9pm.”
Norman Scott runs Dougie’s Tavern in Hebburn, South Tyneside, which has 1,000 flags up and a 100ft marquee outside. The 59-year-old said: “It is pretty feasible that we will have five hundred here, the marquee is our fanzone.
“But people are already talking about taking a day off and asking what time they can arrive. When England score, it is just a fantastic sight.” Many fans have built “lockdown locals” in back gardens.