Fans go from euphoria to despair as England falls short

Hundreds who had gathered for hours in London's Trafalgar Square filed off dejectedly, broken glass from beer bottles crunching underfoot.

London: It took just a few weeks to undo decades of pessimism for England fans, persuading millions that the team could defy decades of disappointment and win a major international soccer tournament for the first time since 1966. For much of Sunday's final against Italy, it felt like it might.

But when Italy won the European Championship in a 3-2 penalty shootout, following a match that ended 1-1 after extra time, fans sat with heads in hands. At a fan zone in Croydon, south London, friends hugged one another in consolation as a DJ played Oasis' Don't Look Back in Anger.

Hundreds who had gathered for hours in London's Trafalgar Square filed off dejectedly, broken glass from beer bottles crunching underfoot.

In Newcastle, northern England, the crowd watching at a fan zone applauded the dejected team.

We have come so far, winning would have topped it all off, said 18-year-old student Millie Carson.

The team has brought the country together. Everyone has been loving life in these hard times.

But one fan expressed a widespread sense of frustration, shouting: I cannot do this anymore.

England's last victory at a major international soccer tournament was the 1966 World Cup, before the lifetimes of most people in the country. Many fans said that regardless of the outcome, a half-century cloud had been lifted by manager Gareth Southgate's young and dynamic team.

The team's surprising success at the Euros has been a balm for many in England after decades of dashed hopes, more than a year of pandemic restrictions and more than 128,000 coronavirus-related deaths in the U.K.

England's Football Association condemned the abuse and called for the toughest punishments possible for anyone responsible.

Earlier, hundreds had gathered to watch the game on big screens at an official fan zone in the square, growing increasingly soggy but undaunted in the London rain.

I never thought I'd see anything like this in my lifetime, said 32-year-old fan Neil James before kickoff.

I can't even comprehend the idea England could win something. I just want to drink and drink tonight work tomorrow is on the back burner.

As they absorbed Sunday's defeat, some fans were already looking toward next year's World Cup in Qatar.

I'm gutted, said 19-year-old Jake Shepherd in Newcastle. But this sets us for the World Cup who says we cannot win it?

AP