To wish the people screaming outside would shut up?

[Notcontent]

Yes, I do understand that people are excited about the football, but it’s Tuesday night and my DC, who is completely exhausted, has to get up early for school - the rather scary shouting has just woken her up. Yep, I know someone will say I should move to the middle of nowhere. I would love to - as many people would - but sadly that’s not possible.

can only find enjoyment in s football match

Yes gosh you are so Right there.

All those millions of football fans world wide have nothing else in their lives.

It doesn’t unite the country. It unites the population of England with some interest in football. There is nothing like football to make people project their own enthusiasms onto others who literally couldn’t care less. Except maybe the love of cats.

Whoever was ranting about “overpaid people kicking a ball around”

Wayne Rooney is worth £160m for running around and kicking a bag of wind and being at the top of his profession for 20 years.

The incredibly talented JK Rowling is worth just under £1bn for writing stories about boy wizards over a similar period.

The also highly talented Beyoncé is worth £500m for singing and dancing, mostly to songs written by other people.

All 3 are simply doing stuff for our entertainment. They aren’t saving lives, they aren’t saving the environment. Although all three do put a significant percentage of their earnings into chartiable projects.

So why is Wayne Rooney castigated as underpaid and we praise Beyoncé and JK.

Just because you might like to listen to music or read a book rather than watch sport it doesn’t make it any less worthy and yet Rooney and other footballers are “overpaid” and the others are “getting what they deserve”

A member of my close family is a bit like some of the depressing posters on this thread.

I'll ring her later, I can guarantee she'll moan about the neighbours (who she hates) and that they were shouting loudly during the match. She'll also say she can't wait for England to get knocked out.

She's a very miserable person generally.

ProfessorMoody So there's no value at all in providing boys (and more girls now too) from the most deprived areas in the UK (and worldwide) with dreams, a focus, direction, somewhere to be on a regular basis other than street corners, a sense of belonging other than to a gang, teaching them the value of hard work, fitness, and taking care of your body, learning teamwork?

Grass roots football reaches disadvantaged children in ways that no other sport or project does. In addition many football clubs run schools providing alternative education for very damaged children who have been or are at risk of being excluded from school.

It is able to do all this because of the commercial game. It's true that many footballers can't deal with the money and fame that comes to them very young, but who could when they've often come from real deprivation themselves and don't have any experience to support them? Clubs are working hard on that and the current England squad are untainted by the kind of behaviour you have judged all footballers for.

What would you suggest to support those communities and try and keep the children away from gangs, crime and drugs? Something that can reach 100s of thousands of children just in the UK?

Grass roots football reaches disadvantaged children in ways that no other sport or project does. In addition many football clubs run schools providing alternative education for very damaged children who have been or are at risk of being excluded from school

This. Football is a literal life changer for many underprivileged kids.

@chemenger

You dont think people look more cheery out and about today? You don’t think the significant boost to the economy last nights win will generate on Saturday hasn’t cheered up small business owners?

I think “Unite” is a strong word. I cannot think of a single thing Britain has been “united” on in decades, everyone has a different perspective, but if you can’t see that this is a positive thing for the country then I think you are wilfully ignoring the obvious.

This. Football is a literal life changer for many underprivileged kids

Absolutely this.

Some people are just miserable fuckers and try to hide it by pretending to be somehow superior.

But sadly we all know and they know they just miserable fuckers.

Usernumbers I'm not totally sure you're comparing like for like when you compare football to other forms of entertainment. The major football teams are allowed to get into ridiculous amounts of net debt that for any other business - and it's not about sport now, in the big leagues, it's all business - would result in them having been wound up or made bankrupt years ago. Beyonce's record company is not running at a loss. JK Rowling's publisher is not running at a loss. In 2016, Man Utd had a net debt of £561 MILLION.

What a miserable OP.

EN-GER-LAND !!!!!!!!!!

(Btw, I have never had a more unenjoyable evening - it was torture !!)

seasawride

Just a slightly different perspective, I’m on the board of a new club, aiming to become semi-pro.

We’ve got our own ground this year, just a couple of the things we’re providing:-

We have enough sponsorship to be able to offer free membership for children in poverty, including being able to provide them with kit.

We are planning on running - with the help of a specialist - sessions for people (of varying ages) with special needs.

We are running free summer clubs for parents who can’t afford holiday childcare.

It is really important to us that we are first and foremost a club who adds value to the community

Saying “everything to do with football is vile” is incredibly ignorant.

Jaques

That’s fantastic good for you

jaques that sounds brilliant.

My dd plays for a good local ladies team. Every Tuesday and Sunday all through the winter (except when pitches were frozen!). She loves it. Thanks for supporting by being a board member

I’m really, really excited to be part of it. I’m actually rugby player/coach but have long term injury so doing something positive.

We have such fabulous ideas for the next 5 years

Grassroots football for children is completely different to professional football.

Also, not every child is into sport. I'm a teacher and the pushing of sport in schools at the moment is all well and good for the children who are actually interested in it, but just another way of excluding the disabled children, the ones who aren't interested and the ones who hate sports. Not much else is provided for them.

DS2 didn't wake up, as he was already asleep, and nothing wakes him up. DD had only just gone to bed, and was colouring because she couldn't switch off anyway. Again, if she'd been asleep, nothing would have woken her up.

Different yes, but not separate. Grassroots only exists in the way it does because of the professional game.

If sport is being pushed inappropriately in schools that's the fault of educators/government, not football

disabled children, the ones who aren't interested and the ones who hate sports

These are exactly the kids that most of the sporting and activity initiatives are trying to help!!

@shatnerswig

Not the case at all. Manchester has EBITDA of almost £200m. That profit:debt ratio is negligible to the level of debt. They could repay in three years if they chose to, it’s just the cost of debt to them is so low and they can generate a better return their capital than it cost them.

Rooneys salary and all of the top salaries in football are not stretching their clubs at all. Football is a profitable business these days.

Yes there are some horror stories like Portsmouth and Leeds gambling on being a top team and failing, but that’s not the players fault.

I’d also point out that EMI music group, who has Katy Perry, Pink floyd, Coldplay and kylie. It went bust 4 years ago. Because it couldn’t manage it’s debt.

Grassroots football for children is completely different to professional football

Ah. So maybe you should have been a little clearer when you said:-

Football and everything it stands for is vile

Grassroots football for children is still part and parcel of the professional game.

God some of you are utterly miserable bastards. I am 5 months pregnant, have a 14 month old and am NOT a hooligan. My DH and I watched the match and then went to bed. All this crap of increasing domestic violence......If someone is that way inclined then anything can trigger it. Don't blame it on sport.

My children make noise early in the morning and equally I appreciate people celebrating the football last night.

God life must be pretty miserable for some of you posters - notably OP and UserX. Why don't you dig yourselves a hole and reappear on 16th July. Let the rest of us enjoy it and you go back to moaning about someone parking near your bloody drive. IDIOTS.

I think in my dds primary class of 29 there wasn't one child who didn't enjoy some sort of sport. Even if for a couple that was keeping score and putting all the kit out

Will you be sharing that generous message professormoody with your pupils today?