EURO 2024
Friday June 14th — Sunday July 14th
England @ 17/5
France @ 15/4
Germany @ 5/1
Portugal @ 6/1
Spain @ 15/2
Italy @ 14/1
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James Graham’s hugely successful, Olivier Award-winning play Dear England put Gareth Southgate’s reign as England manager centre stage.
Opening at The National Theatre in 2023, it transferred to the Prince Edward Theatre in the West End; and, improbably, is rumoured be heading over to New York in the near future. Though quite how Broadway audiences will respond to parochial jokes about Harry Maguire’s pneumatic forehead, remains to be seen.
The play credits Southgate with successfully changing not just the mood of a football team, but also that of a nation; something that is rather difficult to quantify. Evidence of his tactical inertia – against Croatia in the World Cup semi-final in 2018, and against Italy in the Euro 2020 final – is spared forensic analysis.
According to Graham, Dear England will also return for a second run at The National Theatre in 2025; this time with a brand new ending inspired by whatever happens during the next few weeks at Euro 2024 in Germany. Given England’s record at international tournaments, the playwright could be tweaking this new conclusion well into old age before he finally gets the outcome he wants.
Script problems have also been created by the fact that a number of characters from the existing story will have to be written out – the unselected Jordan Henderson, Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho join Harry Maguire on the beach, and will play no part in this fresh coda.
A more pleasing development for the writer is that Gareth Southgate has suggested that the curtain may very well come down on his tenure as head coach…unless England actually win Euro 2024. This is the kind of stakes-upping that any dramatist would welcome.
So we have a tentative, satisfying story arc in place; but is there any chance that the manager and his team can deliver it? The curtain comes-up on this latest act on Sunday evening – Serbia v England is an 8pm kick-off at the Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen.
England are hyped – favoured by some to lift the trophy – but little in their recent performances suggests Southgate is close to unlocking the ability of the undoubtedly talented attacking players. England are frequently slow-starters too, even in tournaments when they have fared well, so a good result on Sunday is far from guaranteed.
Little in their recent performances suggests Southgate is close to unlocking the ability of the undoubtedly talented attacking players.
Pessimists may even be inclined to seek out the odds of England failing to make it out of Group C. Besides, there are other main characters who will be striving to ensure that their story is the one that defines Euro 2024.
Kylian Mbappé, for example, arrives in Germany as a newly-gilded Galáctico, captain of the French team, and poised to embark on his latest tilt at complete global domination. Supported by the strongest squad in the competition – could swollen, individual ego be the only barrier to gloire française?
And on the subject of Himalayan egos, it would be unwise to overlook Cristiano Ronaldo’s willingness to hog the narrative of a tournament. With the creative talents of Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva, João Félix, and latest Benfica prodigy, João Neves, ready to feed the bionic GOAT; and with Group F appearing ostensibly weak; CR7 will be salivating like Niagara Falls at the prospect of yet more international goals.
Prior to the last European Championships, Gareth Southgate wrote an open letter to the nation that began with the words: ‘Dear England fans’. But perhaps, this time around, when he leaves Germany, he will he be in receipt of a short letter from the FA; one that concludes, sadly, with the words: ‘Auf wiedersehen, Gareth’…
Or perhaps he will finally get to close the show with the finale that he, dramatist James Graham, and the millions of England fans desperately crave?
The cursor is flashing expectantly upon the blank page…
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