Unless you’ve only just recently emigrated from a parallel universe where the game of football doesn’t exist, you’re going to know there’s a game of football this afternoon involving the England team.

Actually you might not be aware that there’s a football games this afternoon involving the England team, because its not as if the media as per usual hasn’t been overhyping expectations of the England team doing well during the current Euro championships. Its not as if that every time you’ve tuned into ITV in the past week that ITV have at every opportunity have been reminding you that England versus France is live & exclusive on ITV. Its not as if to the point of overkill that ITV have been reminding people during every commercial break & during every news bulletin that England versus France is live & exclusive on ITV.

The hype regarding the England team doing well in this European Championships hasn’t been as bad as it has been in previous Word Cups & European Championships, but there’s still been plenty of hype raising expectations of England doing well this time round & as per usual ITV have been over selling that a football game involving the England team is live & exclusive on ITV. The reason ITV do sell to the point of overkill that they’re broadcasting a football game involving England is that when it comes to international football matches its only games involving England that get substantial viewership. Of course some will say well this being England you should expect football games involving England to be the the football games to get substantial viewership, yes but I wonder how many tuning into ITV this afternoon are real football fans or in fact xenophobic bigots wanting to teach Johnny Foreigner a lesion.

If England loses then there’ll be England supporters who’ll beat up people who they reckon look odd & if England wins then there’ll be England supporters who’ll beat up people who they reckon look odd. Never mind Panorama doing an edition on racist football hooligans in Eastern Europe, they should do an edition about the amount of Goths & Transgender type people get beaten up during  any World Cup or European championship when England are playing. During the 2006 World Cup I heard of at least two Goths & at least one transgendered person who got beaten up by thugs in England shirts. Though hooliganism might not be such a problem in & around football grounds, the centres of many towns & cities are no go zones before & after England play in any World Cup or European Championship.

I’m sure there are England fans who wear the three lions or all the good things that this country represents, but they seem very much in a minority. It seems to me that the majority who wear the three lions are doing so to mask the fact they’re racist xenophobic bigots! It seems to me that many who wear the three lions are insecure White men looking for a piss up & punch up as a means of dealing with their pent up aggression from being insecure White. I’m not saying you can’t be proud to be English for the right reasons, but many supposed England football supporters aren’t proud to be English for the right reasons, many wear England shirts & use football as a means of masking the fact they’re xenophobic bigots.

I’ll admit that in some ways I hope that England goes out the European Championships early because then its less likely that anybody looking odd to a thug in an England football shirt is likely to get the crap beaten up. I’d love England to do well if I felt the majority wore the three lions & supported England for England being a diverse place & tolerant of diversity, but until Goth & transgender people cease to be beaten up by thugs in England shirts that can’t be the case.