On a night that was meant to be one of the biggest in the history of English football, violence and racism reared its ugly head as the fans of the England men’s national team went on the rampage.
The actions of the fans and the damages caused caught everyone’s attention as expected and almost every high-profile personality made their displeasure known. England captain Harry Kane lashed out saying they did not want fans of that ilk.
After England lost the 2020 Euro final against Italy at Wembley, violent fans not only attacked the visiting Italian fans but also racially abused their own players – namely the black players Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka, all of whom had missed penalties in the tense final.
Videos and images flooded social media as Wembley, London and the players’ social media accounts faced the anger from the fans after the defeat. This, remember, was the first time the men’s team had reached a major final in 55 years, since they won the World Cup in 1966 at the same stadium.
Scores of officers wearing riot gear and clutching shields were making their way through the streets of central London when large crowds attempted to push into the fan zone at Trafalgar Square without tickets.
The riot police were also seen at Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square in London after football supporters were climbing over streetlamps, over the roofs of buses and setting off fire in front of hundreds of fans following the final.
Ahead of the game as well there were chaotic scenes at Wembley Stadium, with footage showing dozens of fans trying to force their way past barriers to get into the stadium.
A mural in Rashford's hometown of Withington was defaced before it was covered in messages of support. But was soon covered up with messages of support from the fans before a local artist repaired it.
Who Said What About the Misbehaviour?
The police in London swung into action and dispersed the miscreants and Twitter deleted the posts of abuse and blocked several accounts in the aftermath.
The England football team’s former players, the like of Gary Lineker were the first to react to the situation and condemn the acts. England cricketer Jofra Archer too asked people to not abuse the players.
"Do not racially abuse those players tonight!," tweeted pace bowler Archer a few hours after the final as trolls on social media began abusing the players.
The actions of the fans and the damages caused caught everyone’s attention as expected and almost every high-profile personality made their displeasure known.
From The Royal Family, Prince William and his family were at the game, the FA, Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the Home Secretary, all condemned the unruly scenes.
"This England team deserve to be lauded as heroes, not racially abused on social media. Those responsible for this appalling abuse should be ashamed of themselves," the PM tweeted.
The FA also backed its players and tweeted, "We are disgusted that some of our squad -- who have given everything for the shirt this summer -- have been subjected to discriminatory abuse online after tonight's game. We stand with our players," it added.
"The FA strongly condemns all forms of discrimination and is appalled by the online racism that has been aimed at some of our England players on social media.
"We could not be clearer that anyone behind such disgusting behaviour is not welcome in following the team," the statement added.
How Did the Players React?
Understandably, the reactions left the England team very disappointed in their fans and led by their captain Harry Kane, the made it clear that they don’t want to associate with unkind fans.
"Three lads who were brilliant all summer had the courage to step up and take a pen when the stakes were high," the Tottenham striker added on Twitter.
"If you abuse anyone on social media you're not an England fan and we don't want you."
While almost everyone on the England put out a statement against racism, defender Tyrone Mings also criticised the Home Secretary Priti Patel who last month described players taking the knee against racism as "gesture politics".
“You don’t get to stoke the fire at the beginning of the tournament by labelling our anti-racism message as ‘Gesture Politics’ & then pretend to be disgusted when the very thing we’re campaigning against, happens,” he wrote after the Secretary said she was disgusted at the abuse directed at the players.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)