It was all too easy to lose count of how many flags there were: 50? 60? 100, or more? Leicester, Coventry, "our mate Jimmy Lockett", Marwood Whites, Courthouse Reds, Oulton Broad and Hereford. It seems there was no part of England that hadn't had a run on its polyester flags of St George. And for that matter Belgrade might be short on flags too - there was barely an inch of Gelsenkirchen hoarding that wasn't marked out as territory by fans of either Serbia or England.
With fingers crossed and barring any light night disorder, the sole first-round match to have been designated as "high risk" by Uefa passed without real trouble or incident. But it did confirm what had already been visible across the Ruhr valley these past few days; that the international football tournament is back and football fandom with it.
Eight years is a long time in football, and Germany 2024 is the first tournament since France 2016 to offer easy, unfettered enjoyment to European supporters. They have embraced the opportunity. Fans from across the continent and beyond (there were Japanese ultras in the mix in the town of Essen yesterday morning, and a family of Mexicans who had arrived turned out in England gear, with Bellingham on the back of course) have been talking, joking, chilling and, yes, drinking to their hearts' content for nearly a week.
This story is from the June 17, 2024 edition of The Guardian.
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This story is from the June 17, 2024 edition of The Guardian.
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