To not support England?!

[Feetballislife]

Live and work in England. Not English. My team didn’t qualify for the World Cup so I’m supporting Scotland! Lobe a plucky underdog, have some Scots heritage ( and some English to be fair) plus I NEVER support English sports teams. EVER.
Football has inevitably come up in the office and several colleagues are generally pissed off that I’m not supporting England, insist I should be etc etc. Stupidly I mentioned that I never support England … did not gone down well.
If you live here then you should etc etc

YANBU - support who you like!
YABU - you ingrate, you live in the country you should support the national team.

Omg I'm so so so slow. I was thinking washing product!!!

Yes we certainly do, the entire evening schedule was set around the soaps for many many years, decades even.

I nearly put soap operas and then thought no one has said that in forty years.

So do all the people in your office support the local football team, regardless of where they came from? If you came from Liverpool but you live in Oxford, would you have to support Oxford? I don't think so!

I think you know exactly what you were doing when you posted …

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She was probably optimistic that it would be taken in the intended spirit.

Anyway OP, I would handle your work situation by adopting a stricken expression and whispering "It's against my religion to cheer for England"

Honestly, it sort of is. I could get myself excommunicated…

Not supporting the England football team doesn’t remotely mean the OP doesn’t like England to live in. Thats just ridiculous.

Me too OP. NI by birth, happily support either Irish team. Lived in England for 35 years never supported them in anything. DS English DH Scottish, don't support them either.

And that's fair enough.

I remember booking a holiday abroad not realising there was an England game on against the country we would be in during the trip. It was the Euros I think; Ireland hadn't even qualified. DH (English) said we should go to watch it in the pub. I was slightly worried; what if he was the only English person, would the atmosphere be ok, especially as we'd have our DC with us.

He shrugged off my concerns telling me I had nothing to worry about, the local supporters would be absolutely fine. We watched it in the hotel bar and he was right; they applauded their own team politely and nodded at him when England got a goal. All very civilised and sporting. He gave me a 'I told you so' look.

Then at half time the door of the bar opened and a gang trooped in talking loudly in unmistakeable Irish accents. DH looked at me again and raised his eyebrows 'Uh-oh'.

Support whoever you want. I couldn’t care less who random colleagues support. I guess it’s the announcing that you never support England to the office that pissed them off, but I’m guessing you partly said it for a reaction so you can’t be surprised that you got one!

‘they applauded their own team politely and nodded at him when England got a goal. All very civilised and sporting. He gave me a 'I told you so' look.’

I’ll take things that never happened for 500 🤣 famously fans supporting their national football team in major international finals generally politely clap their team while giving kudos to the opposition outplaying them.
AND THEN the Irish walked in… what was next? Bar fights? Did they throw chairs around? Presumably that little bit was thrown into the end of your tall tale because you’ve decided I must be Irish.
Cool story bro!

Why assume that an officeful of people in England are England fans, or indeed, care about football?

True. It was mostly about the sweepstakes TBH.

Ah yes, the Norman Tebbitt Index of Englishness: would you support England at cricket - or the Other Chaps?

Sorry, I always tend to assume anyone trotting that one out is a bit racist.

I'm British but have a father who was born elsewhere. I'm not remotely bothered about footy but on occasion I do watch an international competition and generally shout for my dad's (and my joint) country of origin. We even have a flag, somewhere ...

You'll be losing that 500! They were Dutch and VERY polite, he got no shit whatsoever... until the Irish (Dubs) came in and roared 'wanker' at him at every opportunity. He deserved it obviously.

They were Dutch and VERY polite,

Are you sure they were Dutch?

Oh...

We were at a holiday place. That's a good point actually.

course they did. Pick the one English guy amongst all those placid Dutch. Irish don’t tend to shout wanker BTW. There’s plenty of things they might say but that’s not anywhere near the top of the list.

The goader and become the goadee!

Course they were, sitting there quietly while their team lost 2-1 in the semis and got knocked out by England. I bet they went and hugged OPs husband and bought him and drink then gave him the bumps while shouting ‘huzzar!’ 😜

What a joy you sound. As do all the team ‘haters’. People like to bleat that they don’t support England because there is some ridiculous culture of envy going on. We don’t have the same back to Scotland because we are not envious of their sports teams. Wonder why.

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I'm afraid you are very much mistaken. Where are you from in Ireland?

Ahh. I'm Scottish, actually, and have no idea who Norman Tebbit is. I just imagined moving to another country and guessed how long it might take me to start feeling 'at home' there. Nobody has ever called me racist before so that's new!

Who IS Norman Tebbit?? Someone from
a 70s sitcom I’m assuming?