In spite of those who sneered at the headline, I maintain that when it comes to international football I don’t have a particular favourite team.
I’ve gone through spells when I have cheered on the Irish. Spells where I have been happy with every good result that Scotland gets.
I have gone through spells when I simply refused to watch my own national side, most notably after the SFA scandalously gave the job back to Alex McLeish after first considering Walter Smith again.
During this World Cup (where I’ve had the immense good fortune to have a job which allowed me to watch each and every minute of each and every game, although I worked through several of them) I have cheered on underdogs and favourites.
Underdogs even when they’ve been going up against the favourites I was cheering on a game before.
I have wanted to see teams from Africa, Asia, North and South America, Oceania and Europe triumph, sometimes a few of them on the same day. When I call myself a World Cup neutral I genuinely do believe that I mean it.
My old man once responded to being called a bigot by the telling the guy “I’m not a bigot. I don’t care who beats Rangers.”
It always summed up for me the central feeling I have when watching England. You do feel like a neutral when you don’t care who the opposition against them is.
You simply want that team to win and win well.
This has nothing to do with being Scottish either, and I resent deeply any suggestion that this is merely the expected response of somebody who voted Yes and would do so again.
No, I have a feeling that this is a nearly universal thing.
I once read in a book (I would love to remember which one and who wrote it) that the author saw a sign in an Australian safari park which advertised its rates; underneath them, it said “Englishmen on bicycles admitted free.”
In the same section of the book, he shared an old joke; two tribesmen are travelling through the Serengeti and one sees a lion licking another lion’s backside. “What the Hell is that animal doing?” he asks. His friend says, “Well, that poor beast just ate an Englishman and is trying to get the taste out of its mouth.”
Jokes like that can be heard in every corner of the world. I would imagine that Brexit, on its own, has produced enough of them to fill a telephone book.
There is something in the English character, maybe, a smugness, a sense of superiority, which makes it very easy to root for the other side. There is also a shameful section of their media – and this comes across in a particularly nasty way in some of their sports journalists; not the serious ones, but those who dwell in the netherworld of Fleet Street – who cannot help but mention the empire in every other article as though they were re-forging it.
Even the broadcast media are not immune to this stuff.
During matches against Germany and Argentina the machismo, the bravado, the fetishizing of war and of victory over a “hated foe” is so hard to stomach at times that you are desperate to see them get skelped.
It gets that way against France as well at times, when they are referred to as the “Old Enemy” as though the Hundred Years War ended last week instead of more than 500 years ago.
Germany and France have fought umpteen wars since; those countries forged the European Union and hold it together to this day. Neither of those nations looks back on the victories and defeats of old with anything other than regret that they happened at all.
This is peculiarly British.
It is, in fact, almost peculiarly English although you’ll have noticed the steady creep of it into our culture with poppy mayhem every year now and, of course, a section of our own society up here which is every bit as immersed in all that monarchy and empire garbage as any Little Englander ever has been or ever will be.
Every country wants to beat them now. Every country who comes up against them and wins takes an almost savage satisfaction in it, even those which don’t have to live with Alan Shearer and Gary Lineker before every World Cup fixture, no matter who is playing, talking about England’s “path to the final” or other such presumptuous guff.
Even the English know it themselves; Shakespeare’s celebrated “This England” monologue from Richard III builds from patriotic gushing before falling to cold condemnation long before the end.
“That England, that was wont to conquer others, hath made a shameful conquest of itself” is perhaps one of the greatest denunciations of someone’s own country that has ever been put to words, and it’s as true now as it was when he wrote it.
No single individual did more to codify what being English represents … but he repudiated those very same things time and time again in his work.
There is something in some part of the English spirit which builds something up only to break it down.
That is generous and warm but is equally capable of sneering contempt and curtain twitching satisfaction at the travails and struggles of others. Something that preaches a national love of tolerance, respect, openness and freedom … but seems to yearn for the kind of leadership that would snatch those things away in an instant.
I don’t understand England, and never have.
Orwell himself, one of the smartest men and finest writers in the history of this island, tried in vain to do it, and in “England Your England” came as close to the mark as anyone ever has; even his fearsome intellect was almost overcome by the myriad contradictions at the heart of the English character.
I don’t hate them. It’s just that certain things about the English baffle and confuse me as much as the behaviours of Sevconia, and certain others – like their propensity and tolerance for Tory governments – flat out appal me.
I enjoy seeing them lose. I admit it.
If they weren’t so insufferable, so up their own backsides, so confident and smug about themselves, I would be as agnostic about their fortunes as I am those of Wales and even the North of Ireland whose results I mostly never even look for.
When it comes to England I am both a neutral and not … I can admire the skills of their team and even enjoy watching them. I can feel good about the average man and woman in the stands when they are doing well, and yet abhor the songs about German bombers.
But really, I just want to see them lose every time they play, and I no more try to understand it than I try to understand why I instinctively kill every wasp that crosses my path. I don’t bear them any particular ill-will … but it’s there, it’s reflexive and I don’t try and fight it.
I will enjoy these last three World Cup games more because none of the results can possibly lead to any scenario which benefits Harry Kane and I write that as a guy who has loved watching every second of Saka that he has been on the ball, and as someone who thinks Marcus Rashford is not just an outstanding player but an outstanding human being … and I cannot conceive of how those two guys could have been racially abused by their own countrymen for missing penalties at the Euros.
I struggle to either reconcile or separate the England they represent from the one which the bastards who abused them do … and maybe it’s just as simple as that.
I just know that as a neutral I was cheering on France, just as I’d have been cheering on Holland or Argentina or Germany or Spain or Brazil or, in the scenario I think we all dreaded, Morocco in the semi-final.
It’s got nothing to do with being Scottish.
It certainly has nothing do with being a nationalist.
I am an internationalist, and that I genuinely don’t care who beats England is what proves it.
Last tournament they won 1966. Last English born manager to win domestic top tier 1992 Wilkinson. Last English born manager to win UCL 1984 Fagan. Never won Euros. That’s some track record but every single broadcasting company and pundit EXPECTS them to win or reach a final of any tournament they enter. Typical blue red and white mentality…….
All the football’s coming home sense of entitlement bullshit based on nothing, which has an imperialist undertone embodied by their fans wearing crusader costumes, the entirely unwarranted sense of superiority, again based on fuck all except a racist subtext.
The gushing fan boy media bumming them up to the hilt until it INEVITABLY goes tits up and they sit crestfallen and disbelieving seeking to blame foreigners particularly dusky hued ones for their humiliation.
Yep. There are many reasons to celebrate defeats of Ingerlund and Little Englanders.
Marcus Rashford single handedly drove me from anti English sentiment to ambivalence at the euros. The response for their “fans” to him undid in one evening all of that. They are the Rangers of international football and I have as little time for them. Saka and Rashford however I wish every success in club football they can get. Excellent players and explary human beings. Unfortunately they’re in the wrong movie, as they say.
Well said James.??? Sako and Rashford got a torrent of abuse after The Euros for their penalty misses, but nothing pointed at Kane for his miss. Racist Bastards???
If the arrogance ,the smugness ,the entitled attitude wasn’t turned up to 11 on the amps from every single source ,you might just lend a smidgen of support to the English ,now and then ! The Press the Media ,radio ,television ,social media ,every conceivable outlet ,all conspiring to over publicise ‘Engerlund .’ There’s no doubt in my mind that these so called UK / British broadcasters speak specifically to an English audience ….
I have similar sentiments regarding the England football team. That I believe they were unlucky not to beat France added to my enjoyment at the result. I would add thought that being better than that France side is no great achievement; I was not impressed by them. I would go as far as to say that with the exception of the goalkeeper, Griezmann and Mbappe (maybe Giroud) I wouldn’t have any of them starting for Celtic currently.
I could not care if scotland win another game. The covid shambles when christie had to isolate while tierney could play defies belief. Lawell let us down big time on that fiasco
For once, I have genuine sympathy with the English players (and their manager) as they do seem to be genuinely decent and humble professionals, particularly Bellingham, Saka and Rashford – three of the nicest young men you could ever wish meet, as they do seem to realise they are in incredibly privileged position in life simply because they can kick a ball better than most people. However I am loving watching/hearing Shearer, Lineker, Ian Wright, Gary Neville, Keown, Dixon et al spewing about the result and the ref (who was utterly rubbish btw) – the cold hard facts are that despite being by far the better team on the night, England failed to score even one goal from open play and missed a penalty. France score two goals from open play – end of!
I have similar sentiments regarding the England football team. That I believe they were unlucky not to beat France added to my enjoyment at the result. I would add thought that being better than that France side is no great achievement; I was not impressed by them. I would go as far as to say that with the exception of the goalkeeper, Griezmann and Mbappe I wouldn’t have any of them starting for Celtic currently.
I hate them. Glad they’re out. Pricks.
Maybe the dissolution of the Union,the final end of any pretension they are still a major power, would lead to a bit of introspection and understanding about their true place in the world. I doubt it very much as they’ll never stop banging on about “jooring tha woh-ah” and how they beat the bosch (as if they did it by themselves).
I don’t hate the English people, like everywhere else they have their share of arseholes but most folk are fine enough. I do regard their smug democracy-denying politicians with a visceral hatred though, and I loathe their sports commentators and pundits with their sneering disdain for anything that isn’t the EPL and thusly I make no bones that I cannot be neutral and I don’t care who beats them as long as it shuts them up. Maybe, in some far-off time when the UK has been consigned to the dustbin of history, I can be ambivalent towards them, Hell maybe even support them in the right circumstance but as things stand right now?
ANYONE BUT ENGLAND.
Right on, Sepps. Wonderfully stated.
If England had won, Kane’s mind-games, slowly placing the ball and pulling up his socks would have been the headlines in the six o clock news but, instead, one
woman summariser said it was a sign of nerves and that he should never have taken the penalty.
Don’t hate England like majority of people on this.. never done anything against me. I hate the institution at ibrox, that’s all
Bwahahahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Gareth southgate seems to me.. a thoroughly decent man, and a nice man. What’s wrong with saying that
Gareth southgate.. from what I’m watching on tv, seems a nice guy. A mean we shouldn’t judge books by covers. This anti English thing, is not a nice thing.
I support whatever International team I have bet in any particular match, but I never ever, ever bet England. They remind me too much of the Huns.
Your actually Ike a hun.. an ignorant bastard
The way you go about things.. you’re like that rat mbappe, when kane missed that penalty, and when that wee prick Neymar, when he fucked over lustig. You’re an English hating racist prick. It’s ok to hate England, but if it’s an African country, that’s terrible. Your a clown green
Hmmm, another meltdown Sean, go and take a wee lie down bud.
Their fans are probably rational folks most of the time but when the football starts they get whipped into a collective frenzy and lose their shit big time. It’s like a mass hysteria event that they all buy into and not just the media and commentators. Some of their players are decent and humble as is their manager but others are just arrogant privileged dicks. Sterling getting robbed and then coming back was as selfish an act as I can recall from a footballer. So to see them and their nation collectively mourn and then the anger at why they/outside influence allowed it to happen is sweet indeed.
Anyone know what a down green is, I’m asking for a friend. 🙂
I have a soft spot for English xenophopes
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