A report in the Irish Examiner last week noted how the two most-watched matches at the Euros so far were England games, with a massive , tuning in for the Scotland clash the report was released before the Germany match, which likely rivals this figure. These are big numbers, particularly when you consider that Irish viewers also often have the option of watching games on British TV or alternative platforms. The conversations are similar around every tournament.
But more than anything, it was just seen as a bit of craic among peers. Football is more fun to watch when you have someone to root against, and England traditionally fit the bill in that regard. That said, their current manager Gareth Southgate seems like a thoroughly decent person and they boast some of the most exciting attackers in the world, so in their present incarnation, they are arguably harder to dislike than ever.
Yet as one of the top international sides, England are invariably expected to win, so Irish fans will naturally gravitate towards the underdogs more often than not. And few teams build themselves up so high before the almost inevitable fall as England tend to do in the lead-up to major tournaments.
The usual excuses tend to ring hollow. Yes, their media and fans get over-excited about these events but surely that is the case with most countries? The recurring criticisms invariably apply to numerous other countries. Their politicians are shameless. Their historical record is appalling. Their arrogance is astounding. If anything, they have more in common with Ireland than not — indeed, several members of their squad have Irish links and could theoretically have lined out for the Boys in Green, even when you look beyond the now-infamous cases of Declan Rice and Jack Grealish.
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My Sports News. Create your own sports news feed by selecting what interests you most. Create my newsfeed. More Sports. The42 Membership. Partner Publications. The latest Irish and international breaking news, reports and coverage. A platform helping fund the type of in-depth journalism that the public wants to see. Become a Member. In the Ireland of the s and s she was acutely conscious of her accent.
John Champion moved to Ireland from his native Leicester in , straight out of college, with a backpack and little else.
He began working in bars before switching to a career in marketing. It was fair enough. It was directed at me, but I never felt that it was properly aggressive. My grandfather is Irish. He hated it. Most of those interviewed describe quickly becoming aware of the chasm in their knowledge of Irish history.
She made a point of educating herself, and now brings visitors from England to Kilmainham Gaol. In England in the s Murray was struck by that same knowledge gap. I was quite astounded by how little English people knew about Ireland and the history of the two countries. When he first moved to Ireland, Stafford says, he was struck by the friendliness of Irish people and their desire to form a connection.
Matabaro felt the same about the desire to make a connection. They want to make a connection. One of the byproducts of being English in Ireland is that everyone wants to talk about Brexit. It has completely ruined its international standing. And then Brexit happened, and that absolute ignorance of Irish affairs really started to show itself, especially amongst ordinary British people — not knowing, and celebrating not wanting to know.
And other people just not understanding the nature of [the] Border. I feel very annoyed that [the] British political elite has allowed that ignorance to happen.
Brexit has left many of the people we spoke to grappling with questions of identity. What does it mean to be British now, and at what point does their Irishness become the defining part of their identity? Thompson would feel presumptuous describing himself as Irish, despite having an Irish wife and children.
For Murray, the question of identity is as complex as ever. But I feel now that they are too English. Their accents would put them firmly in the English camp as soon as they walked through the door of a new school.
And I worry about the historical crimes they might be blamed for. Please update your payment details to keep enjoying your Irish Times subscription.
When something big like Brexit happens, that knowledge gap is revealed Katie da Gama, a business and executive coach from Southampton , says she knew nothing about Irish history before she arrived here in Commenting on The Irish Times has changed. To comment you must now be an Irish Times subscriber.
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