to think England is still highly xenophobic

[bnad]

Since the European Football Championships have started I've heard several people at work and the other night in a pub make nasty comments about the people of other nations. Germany, Scotland, France, Wales seem to be the most commented upon in deragoratory ways. I used to think that we live in an open minded progressive country with most people being forward thinking people but it seems a lot of people believe and repeat ancient stereotypes.

England is highly xenophobic, except for the rest of the planet.

Every country has an opinion on other countries. We are no different to anyone else.

No more so than any other country (I live abroad -They don't speak very highly of you either!!

England is 'highly xenophobic' if you want to ignore the xenophobia of all the other countries involved in the Euro.

England will also be 'highly xenophobic' during the Olympics too if you want to ignore the other countries xenophobia also.

Have you ever actually been to Germany, Scotland, France, Wales during any major sporting event??

I suspect you haven't if you're singling England out....

YABU you are being very naive, people will always have opinion of other people from other nations.

Football does seem to bring out the worst in people. Its like a platform for all the bigotted vitreol you've never heard before from people you've previously thought were okay. I actively dislike football for this reason, no other sport/activity seems to incite people in the same way.

I have been in other countrys when major sporting events but I've noticed anything.

Sorry that should be I've never noticed anything

I disagree worra, I don't think people talk about other nations in the Olympics or other athletic competitions in the same way they do when it comes to international football. I think it stems from the strange belief that because we invented the game we should be the best at it, and as we're not then it is because the Germans are [insert abuse here], the French are [insert abuse here] etc.

Mind you we invented cricket and rugby, I'm not a fan of either but you don't get the same level of abuse thrown at other nations when these competitions are on.

What exactly do you mean by "nasty comments"?

I think many people are very naive when they talk about how open minded and "progressive" the people of other countries are compared to Britain. In my mind we are one of the most tolerant countries in the world, so tolerant that it hurts us sometimes as we are scared to stick up for ourselves.

Then you've had your head stuck very much in the sand or up your arse OP

Seriously, you've been in other countries during major sporting events and not noticed xenophobia???

If you were in London, Birmingham or Stratford Upon Avon tonight you'd experience loads of it in the pubs from Polish football fans...and that's despite the fact we played Sweden tonight...

I do genuinely think some people either lead sheltered lives or they just want to 'jump on' and single out one country when it comes to this sort of thing.

I've lived all over the world, England is the least Xenophobic country I have lived in.

Josephine- For example I've heard multple references to the World Wars and Nazism regarding Germany and sheep for Wales

larks I take your point about the football v cricket and rugby etc...

But what I won't take is the insinuation from the OP that only English football fans are xenophobic because that's so laughably ridiculous I don't know where to start.

It's bad enough that the tabloids spread this shit but when actual people do it...it's just ignorant.

And have you had your ear to the ground in Germany and Wales bnad?

Anway, Wales didn't even qualify for this Euro so why the fuck would you hear multiple references about them?

It's football.
It brings passions out in all those football fans, but it's not xenophobic.
Every bloody country will be the same, and some fans will take it to extremes, but surely they are the minority.
I'm a Scot who CBA with football, but it's always been like that and I can't see it changing.
Did you know England won the World Cup in 1966 BTW?

The OP isn't saying that England is more xenophobic than anywhere else, they are just saying that England is still "highly xenophobic". I have experienced xenophobia abroad without any sporting competitions going on and I'm sure it'll happen again, if I can ever afford to go abroad again.

BUT, the way I read the op is that this international footballing event has exposed more xenophobia than they previously had heard.

I think Football is an exception to the rule fwiw, IMO its because England has this (totally statistically irrational) odd belief that they are a top 8 world side, when they are not.

But it gets built up and built up by the meedja, then they "underperform", and there is all this hype induced frustration and hate.

It also never helps that it usually falls to some war enemy to knock us out.

I've heard multple references to the World Wars and Nazism regarding Germany

As you would have done in the Holland vs. Germany match.

England's black players get routinely holed and subject to monkey chants, when the play in former eastern bloc countries, A Dutch player was racially abused by Ukranian fans in a training session, Russian and Polish fans knocked the shite out of each other on the streets of Warsaw on Wednesday night over events dating from the second world war and you still think England is uniquely xenophobic?

Remove head from own arse.

I think there's too much snobbery attached to football by some people

Rugby fans make xenophobic remarks

Golf fans make xenophobic remarks

Tennis fans make xenophobic remarks

We'll hear them during the Olympics too

The only thing that we have in common with all the other countries involved is that no matter which country you watch the events in, you will always hear xenophobic remarks.

Still not sure why the OP has brought Wales into this though.....Lol

Rugby/Tennis fans make xenophobic remarks

No, they are NOTHING like as bad as football fans. Golf bores me so I don't know.

Worra- I've heard people talking about Wales and Scotland in terms of the being "bitter" about England and I wasn't particulary trying to single out football it just seems to have been a catalyst IYSIM.

Whatme I didn't say they were anything like them

I simply stated the fact that the fans make xenophobic remarks and xenophobia is xenophobia...no matter what the volume of fans or the 'severity' of remarks.

bnad for some reason you are singling out football and England

But then again you might be one of these tabloid readers for all I know and they don't half swallow the crap they're fed.

You think England is xenophobic? Try Eastern Europe.

Poland: Last time I went there was a lot of anti-semitic graffiti. There are almost no Jews left in Poland, but as a rabbi friend of mine said, you don't need Jews to have anti-semitism. Those that weren't gassed in WW2 got booted out in 1968. I worked in Poland for a while, and one of the older ladies in the office was Jewish and had been incarcerated in Auschwitz during the war. The other women in the office wouldn't speak to her "because she's Jewish", wouldn't invite her out to lunch, and generally treated her like shit.

Romania: An Asian friend of mine got physically dragged out of a supermarket and told not to come back, because they thought he was a gypsy. His wife used to get followed round supermarkets by the staff for the same reason, and was arrested for alleged shoplifting on several occasions.

Now do you think England is xenophobic, in comparison?

I couldn't understand the English, Welsh, Scottish and Irish (at the time) divide when I arrived in the UK. They all hate each other, don't they?

Xenophobic? Or national competitiveness?

I don't believe they truly hate each other, but you would think so listening to them talk.