MANCHESTER, England –It was a quiet night in the Bay Horse pub on Friday, but the locals knew who to blame for that.
“Pretty rubbish that, wasn’t it?” pub regular Barry Barlow told ESPN.
While 22,500 supporters watched — and endured — the Group D stalemate inside Wembley Stadium, with the usual 90,000 capacity reduced by 75% due to ongoing COVID-19 restrictions, thousands of pubs across England, just like the Bay Horse, hosted fans to watch the game on television and big screens.
And after the year we have had with the pandemic, Euro 2020 couldn’t have come at a better time.
The phenomenon can be traced back to Euro 96, when England hosted the tournament and reached the semifinals before being knocked out on penalties by Germany.
The launch of the Premier League in 1992, which coincided with all live games being broadcast on non-terrestrial channels, prompted plenty of fans to watch in pubs rather than pay monthly subscription fees.
“I remember being in here at 7 a.m.
During the 2018 World Cup in Russia, research by the British Beer and Pub Association showed that 6 million pints of beer were bought while watching England’s group-stage opener against Tunisia.
“We expect fans of both nations to buy 3.4 million pints when watching the game itself,” Emma McClarkin, Chief Executive of the British Beer & Pub Association, said ahead of the England-Scotland game.
Drinkers had to pre-book tables, which were spaced apart with warnings that they couldn’t be moved, and face masks had to be worn whenever moving through the pub.
Fortunately for Smith, there was rarely any danger of anyone jumping to their feet and cheering during Friday’s game.