It is a tradition that has survived a change in generations, a change in attitude. The mood for most of England’s games on foreign soil is no longer entirely hooliganism. This, if anything, equates to a particularly raucous bachelorette party. Have drunk a lot. Drugs are: a favorite mantra, at least for Euro 2016, is a source for cocaine. More often than not, there is nudity at a sporting event.
It would take a sharp mind of mine to analyze why this might be the case. Maybe it’s no secret: Maybe that’s how people, in general, let loose. Perhaps this is how young Englishmen perceive foreign countries: this is what you do when you watch the Mediterranean sun. The problem there is that these problems don’t happen with fans from Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland, even though they go to the same kinds of places on the same holidays.
So, perhaps, it has something to do with England: not the country, but the soccer team. There are some who are old enough to live in Marseille in 1998 and Charleroi in 2000, the last throws of old hooliganism, and who may still yearn for a little topless wander down memory lane with a water cannon standing at one end. .
But there are many more who may have watched the videos and seen the footage and guessed that being an England fan is what it is, that’s how you earn your streaks and support your country, and in fact, have become cosplay goons. England’s chance to claim space and go a little wild; That is his role, his patriotic duty. This is what England has to be.
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The question, in the end, is a simple one: what, exactly, did the police think was about to happen? Fans flocked to Wembley Park’s underground station throughout the day, gathering in greater numbers under the shadow of the stadium. Some of them – 60,000 or so – had tickets. There was no double, possibly triple that number.