Football fans will be dancing the night away, or crying into their beers, as pubs are set to stay open late tomorrow for the much anticipated Euro 2024 final.
New Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has allowed pubs to stay open until 1am as Southgate’s side battle it out against Spain on Sunday evening.
She explained that licensing hours had been eased as the final is of ‘exceptional national significance’.
Ms Cooper said: ‘We’re so proud of and the England team. It’s right that we can all come together tomorrow to enjoy the match and – do we dare to dream?! – hopefully celebrate an England victory.
‘I want to pay special thanks to the police officers and first responders who will be working across communities to keep us safe. I look forward to getting behind all our brilliant players, who bring so much pride to our country, and I want to wish the team the best of luck. Let’s bring it home.’
The good news follows Prime Minister Keir Starmer calling for a bank holiday if England win Euro 2024 to ‘mark the occasion’, although he said he does not want to ‘jinx it’.
Sir Geoff Hurst, who scored a hat-trick when England won the 1966 World Cup, has launched a Change.org campaign urging King Charles III to grant a bank holiday if England become European champions.
Bank holiday or not, football fanatics have taken to boozers up and down the country – and abroad – ahead of the match on Sunday.
After England defeated the Netherlands with a last gasp Ollie Watkins goal, thousands of supporters have flocked to Germany in a last ditch attempt to watch the Three Lions in the final.
Tickets for the showpiece event are now selling for £2100 minimum, whilst budget airlines like Ryanair saying they are completely sold out on all planes to Berlin until after the tournament.
British Airways also reported a 1000 per cent increase in searches for flights after the match and are now scrabbling to put on extra journeys, albeit at inflated prices.
After getting to Germany, prices are even worse, with Berlin’s Hilton Hotel demanding 1425 Euros for Sunday night when the match is played. The next night the price drops to 136 Euros.
As the first of a possible 50,000 fans begin arriving on German soil, it was revealed that the players’ families are struggling to find a route to Berlin.
At least one member of the squad’s family has decided to drive to Germany because they cannot get a flight, while other haves inquired about hiring a private jet – only to be told there are no landing slots available.
More frugal England fans will be watching the match from boozers in the UK, which are now set to stay open until past midnight, while others are heading to Benidorm to make the final a ‘derby’.
Despite being in enemy territory, Benidorm has become a hotspot for Brits who can’t get out to Germany with hundreds of fans making their way to the popular suntrap on flights as cheap as £179 on EasyJet.
Taking to social media, fans expressed their excitement at ‘retaking’ Benidorm following the final whistle if England triumphed.
One X user declared: ‘England vs. Spain. The winner keeps Benidorm.’
Another said: ‘Benidorm will look like the last days of Rome on Sunday.’
One man joked: ‘A sensible country would airlift British citizens out of Benidorm before Sunday.
‘Either result guarantees a reasonable amount of rioting.’
The excitement is equally as palpable at home – with fans already showing their pride by wearing the Three Lions strip ahead of Sunday’s match.
Even King Charles has shown his support for England by proudly holding up England football shirts alongside actor Idris Elba.
It has been confirmed that his son, Prince William, will fly to Germany for the final – in his capacity as President of the Football Association.
Residents of Kirkby Estate in London has certainly got the memo, decking their balconies out with hundreds of England flags.
Downing Street has also made an effort to show support for Southgate’s side, with flags and decoration framing the iconic black door.
The new Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his chosen Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves will have plenty to celebrate come Sunday – even if England lose.
England’s success in Germany so far has provided a much-needed shot in the arm for the economy.
Research for Argos carried out by the Centre for Economic and Business Research shows that England making it to their second successive Euros final will end up boosting consumer spending by £2.4 billion in the UK.
Fans are expected to splurge £488 million in the four-day build-up to tomorrow’s match alone – around a third of which will be spent in pubs and other hospitality venues.
Trade body UK Hospitality said England’s performance in the tournament would see the entire sector benefitting from an overall sales increase of £800 million.
And those who intend to stay in to watch will also do their bit to boost the economy, with supermarkets seeing a spike in food and drink sales.
Tesco expects to sell nearly 800,000 packs of sausages and more than 1 million pies this weekend – as well as 4 million packs of beer and cider, while John Lewis predicts the ‘biggest barbecue weekend of the year’.
Sales of televisions, decorations and partyware have also contributed to the economic boom, while bookies have seen an increase in customer activity.
And on matchday itself, British Beer And Pub Association chief executive Emma McClarkin said pubs could serve an incredible 10 million extra pints as fans gather to watch the match in bars and beer gardens.
She added: ‘A huge £48 million in additional trade for pubs and breweries will be generated by fans across the nation.’
It’s no wonder Yvette Cooper is so keen to keep the pubs open until 1am.