So we survived. We made it out the other side. After all the strategising about where, when, if and how we would watch England take their World Cup fight to Mexico, we pulled it off, stepping out bleary eyed into the dawn just about intact. And boy was it worth it.
Five goals, two penalties, one red card and six yellow cards later, a 10-man England emerged the victors in one of their best performances in recent memory.
Here, we take a look at how the country is shaping up after a late night – or early morning – of football.
Pubs
Like the Terminator giving a thumbs up as he slides into molten lava, our outgoing prime minister changed his mind at the last minute on Friday and approved an extension to pub licensing hours from 2am to 5am. A collective sigh of relief broke out across the nation. A celebratory pint with a full English breakfast was back on the table. Cheers Keir!
Well, the stats are coming in and it appears we did ourselves proud, living up to our reputation as a booze-soaked footballing nation. We came, we drank, we conquered.
According to data from the British Beer and Pub Association, almost 6m pints were sold on Sunday night, 1.25m more than normal.
As Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane led England to victory, Heineken UK’s managed operator pubs have reported a 67% boost in sales, including a 81% rise in food sales, a 127% boost to cider and lager up by 76%.
Stonegate Group, the UK’s largest pub company, saw pubs and bars across its estate pour 796,000 drinks, 355,000 more than a typical Sunday.
Dojo, a UK-based card payment provider, says the extended 28-hour session provided an average spending boost of 11% to venues across the UK – that is yesterday’s Sunday shift running into Monday was 11% better than the same shift the previous week.
Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, said: “This was an outstanding night for the Three Lions and fans. Sport and pubs go hand in hand which is why the tournament is a huge boost for pubs, and locals up and down the country will be welcoming communities through the door for the next match.”
Schools
The morning’s school run looked like Dawn of the Dead with pasty slack-jawed children reluctantly shuffling to school after either staying up to catch the match live or getting up early to stream a replay.
Some schools allowed pupils to arrive late, while others opened their doors early for a special screening of the match.
Suggestions of keeping children off school have been much more contentious, even resulting in a tiff between government ministers and the 23-year-old England player Jude Bellingham. “Kids stay off school,” Bellingham told reporters in the moments after the final whistle. Hey Jude, don’t make it bad – the parents are knackered too. Give us a break.
The early education minister Olivia Bailey didn’t agree with Bellingham. He may have scored two of three goals that secured England’s victory but he should stay in his lane. “I would absolutely encourage kids to get themselves into school this morning,” she told Times Radio.
“They might feel a bit tired, but it’ll be a good day at school, and it’s really important they get in there, because every day at school matters, even when you’re feeling a bit sleepy, and of course it will be good to celebrate with their friends too, because what a great result it was.”
Children needed to be more resilient, she argued. High youth unemployment, soaring rent, a warming climate. The future’s bleak kids, toughen up.
“You might feel a bit tired, but that’s also important to learn that resilience, because there’ll be many more days when you feel a bit tired at work, and you’ve got to get through, and you’ve got to still learn,” Bailey told Sky News.
However, school attendance was down more than three percentage points on last week, data revealed.
Information collected at morning registration from more than 12,000 state schools in England showed attendance at 89.79%, compared with 93.09% last Monday, with absences higher among secondary pupils.
The figures are yet to be confirmed by the Department for Education, but according to data collected in real time via Arbor management information system, which is used by over half of schools in England, unauthorised absence was nearly double, up from 2.92% last week to 5.61%.
This was not the case at Annfield Plain infant school in Stanley, County Durham, which saw 100% attendance on Monday, thanks to a more relaxed registration, which remained open until 10am to give football mad families more leeway.
“It’s really worked for us,” said head teacher Martin Urwin. “Attendance is a really big priority for us.” The school opened as usual at 7.30am for a special World Cup themed breakfast, a rerun of the match was showing, and in the playground a couple of teachers organised a penalty shootout.
Parents and children at Hill Avenue Academy primary school in Wolverhampton also benefited from a soft start, keeping the register open until 10am. “It’s been absolutely wonderful,” said the head teacher, Daniel Steventon, who is also a West Bromwich Albion fan .
“There’s been a really fantastic buzz around school. There were children coming in the car park this morning singing ‘It’s coming home’. Everyone’s been in real high spirits today.”
Workplaces
Jude was at it again with workplaces. “Have another shot and text your bosses to say you’re not coming in tomorrow,” he told reporters. Well, where would we be if you hadn’t turned up to work Jude? Trapped in a much more despairing and existential hangover, that’s where.
But anecdotally, it appears we are indeed made of tougher stuff. International Workplace Group, one of the biggest providers of hybrid workspace solutions, serviced offices and co-working spaces, says it is as busy as normal.
“From what we’ve seen this morning, our IWG workspaces across the UK have been as busy as a normal Monday morning, with many Brits turning up to work on time, more or less. We expect our coffee machines are working harder than usual.”
Roads
Fears had been raised that exhausted fans would attempt to drive home after the match, sticking matchsticks in their eyelids and blasting out Wonderwall with the windows down.
But the breakdown service the AA said the workload has been steady so far – and images emerging of railway stations and city centres show a pandemic-like eeriness on empty streets and platforms.
Tony Rich, an AA road safety spokesperson, said: “Workload has been steady for the AA so far this Monday, but after a late night staying up to watch England, drivers shouldn’t underestimate the effects of fatigue. If you’re feeling tired, think twice before getting behind the wheel. A few extra hours’ sleep are far better than risking a collision.”
