England - Is it just me?

Is it just me who couldn’t care less about England national football team? I just don’t get excited/nervous like I do when Barnsley are playing.

I was sat yesterday amongst a large group of friends & they all appeared nervous, & of course cheered when England scored, but I just had nothing, no reaction, no urge to cheer.
I do believe most people feel the same & put it on a bit!

 

It’s because you have no soul

 

No interest in England friendlies but I do care about competitive games. Not a patch on how I feel about Barnsley though.

 

I yelled with delight for both goals. Always do. I have to admit I found it very difficult to like the team when it was represented by the likes of Rooney, Terry, Ashley Cole etc but otherwise they're my national team. I
If I had to choose between England winning the Euros or Barnsley the FA Cup I'd pick the latter but I'd go nuts for either result.

 

I actually watched a fair bit of the game yesterday. (Cricket was over fairly quickly).
Do I get nervous ? Slightly cos I want us to win.
Did I cheer when we scored.? Slightly, I think the close neighbour's heard me.
I may not be as enthused or as nervous when Barnsley play.
But. I don't care if its tiddlywinks. I want England/GB/UK. To win everything they enter. With a passion. And owt That involves Europe v USA eg Ryder and Mosconi cups and ladies/amateur equivalents.

 

I love the euros/world cup, I get excited for the England games especially the further along we get, but I never get nervous like I do when Barnsley play.

 

I used to really look forward to England games at tournaments, then I became politically aware and I’ve struggled ever since.

Booing the knee, booing other nations’ anthems, singing an anthem about sucking up to someone with an undemocratic birthright, all while being one of the most right-wing uncaring nations in the developed world. It makes it hard to get back that excitement I had as a kid.

 

I saw the result last night before I went to bed when i was skimming the news app and really couldn't care less.

I read that the German anthem was booed really loudly. I suspect there was some level of booing when players took the knee last night too.

This morning, the bbc pushed out a snippet of dePfeffel "celebrating" one of the goals.... curious how he just happened to be stood right before a large tv (while he was at some form of garden party) and filmed just at the point of the goal. I'm sure it wasn't staged or a recording of the goal... just fabulous luck of timing!

I'll be criticised of course, but I really hope we don't make the final or win it. Any other time, I wouldn't mind or care. But not this time. But I fear we will. Because fate can be just so twisted.

 

I watch the England games when it's a major tournament, but there's always a slight detachment. It's nowhere near the feeling I get when Barnsley are playing. I'm a bit baffled that last night's win is such a huge news story. Some of these front pages are just mental.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-the-papers-57660473

 

Agree

Major tournaments are ace.

 

I get what you're saying but aren't football teams a representation of our individual ideals and aspirations rather than reality?
I support Barnsley and have done fervently for a very long time but then I think of some of the people that follow and have followed the club over the years and they have no correlation whatsoever to what I feel are my values. I've travelled on supporters buses to away games in the 80s when the back half of the bus was full of hooligans intent on a fight who you'd cross the street to avoid in normal circumstances. I've been at away games both then and now where the behaviour of our support is distasteful. Yet I close my mind and retain my vision of Barnsley FC as a club with working class values, playing within the rules and punching above its weight.
We make our teams and clubs into what we want them to be in our heads. The reality is they're no better than anyone else and, in the case of a sizeable section of England fans, substantially worse.

 

Love it when they do well, but honestly couldn't give a flying fu¢k when they get beat. That's the difference. Tarn results shape my whole weekend.

 

It's an interesting point and I guess you'd have to ask other individuals as I'm probably not the most representative.

Speaking aloud and honestly, I certainly feel more disassociated with anything "English" post brexit, not to be spiteful, but simply because I just don't associate with so much of this nationalism thats being rammed (and for many acceptingly swallowed) down our throats. I can't close my eyes and simply follow. So perhaps for me, it's not morphing the nationalism into something palatable, its assessing what the representation of something is and if i want to be part of it or not.

Over time, I've tended to watch football when I've enjoyed it. It's an entertainment for me, it's not tribal whereas it probably was when I was younger travelling home and away every single game.

There will certainly be plenty of support where its england vs the world, just like we see the sentiment of it being barnsley vs the world. I've never really got that.

And there will be stronger sentiment which was all too readily associated with some very dark times.

 

It's nice they won, but I cant really get too excited either way.

 

I missed England's first match of the tournament (mostly by choice) which is probably the first England match I've missed since I've been old enough to watch, so 35+ years.

I find the frequent disappointment puts me off but loved the last World Cup. I was nervous last night and am starting to get more into it. I don't think we'll win the Euros though.

 

I support the national team, and have always enjoyed World Cup / Euros tournaments. Yes, there are certain groups of fans who are nationalist idiots, but I support the team not the other fans.

 

I get exactly where you're coming from. It's a very sad state of affairs.

 

Yeah, I feel the same but DWL is right, if England win the tournament the Tories will find some way to weaponize it.

 

I like watching England if they play exciting, attacking football. Southgate's team doesn't do that for me and I find it hard to get enthused. I also get pissed off with the total sycophancy of commentators and pundits during the games and in the media generally when they try to big things up. I do tend to agree with Gravy Chips overall too ( that's Gravy Chips the person not gravy chips the food).

 

I was more excited watching Spain v. Croatia and France v. Switzerland.

The sheer racism, xenophobia, lack of class and humility from the ‘In-Ger-Lund’ brigade really puts me off. Smashing up cities in other countries isn’t patriotic either by the way.

I’m even taking a break from Twitter. My timeline is horrendous. The worst being pictures of that tiny German girl in the stand crying accompanied by comments like ‘Nazi b****’ and ‘German lovely person*’. She must be about 7. Rancid. Anyone questions it gets met with “it’s just banter” or “get a sense of humour”.

Its not a tiny minority either. Society is knackered to the point where I don’t think it’ll ever be reversed.