Even those who usually struggle to feign interest in football have found themselves unable to defy being swept up in Euro 2020 this summer.
Due to England’s history-making performance in the tournament, footy fever has reached parts of the population it never normally touches.
For those people, the journey to fully-fledged lovers of the beautiful game has been unexpected, yet thrilling, with plenty of milestone moments marking that conversion along the way…
1. When people kept going on about football at the start of the Euros
2. This was your reaction when someone was to ask if you wanted to go to the pub to watch the match
3. But then you were tricked into going to a party where a match was on
4. And there is only one way to get through it
5. You start paying a bit of attention, but you literally have no idea what is going on
6. When you’re asked for your thoughts on the match
7. Because you’re mostly interested in admiring the players
8. You manage to make all the right noises in all the right places, and somehow get through the night
9. But then the next game rolls around, and you’re suddenly feeling a bit more patriotic
10. And you’re actively willing the lads on, rather than just being indifferent
11. You still have no idea what the offside rule is though, despite numerous explanations
12. Your goal celebrations could still do with a bit of work
13. So you try and amp the enthusiasm up a bit
14. Before you know it, you’re hooting and hollering at the TV
15. The Sweet Caroline chants really get you going
16. And you’ve even got better at describing the game
17. When you’ve found another new football fan to celebrate goals with
18. When you’ve drunk-purchased all the merch at 2am for the next match
19. And you’re ringing round pubs to try and find a table to watch it at
20. You get there and are soon joining in with all the chants
21. When the match looks like it’s going the wrong way, you’re genuinely on the edge of your seat
22. And you’re surprised at how you feel when the other team score
23. But then your team pull it back, and you literally cannot contain yourself
24. You now think you know better than the referee and question every decision
25. Even your friends can’t believe how into it you’ve gotten
26. Every free kick has you like
27. How you feel when your team is awarded a penalty
28. Vs how you feel when it’s the other team taking a shot
29. You completely lose it when your team win
30. Like, properly
31. And you take to the streets in celebration
