British Prime Minister Keir Starmer thinks football is coming home again 58 years after England won the Fifa World Cup as the host nation in 1966.
He said this in Washington, where he met President Joe Biden less than an hour after England defeated the Netherlands 2-1 in the Euro 2024 semi-final at Dortmund, Germany, on Wednesday (July 10).
Asked if football is coming home, he said, “Looks like it.”
England have not lost a game since Labour came to power after the July 4 general election, he said.
England defeated Switzerland on penalties in the Euro quarter-final on July 6.
Now England will face Spain in the final on Sunday.
Starmer watched with Dutch PM
Starmer watched the early part of the semi-final with the new Dutch prime minister , Dick Schoof, who was also in Washington for Nato’s 75th anniversary.
Biden, who played American football in high school, was asked if he watched the game. “I heard,” he said, and joked about England’s progress to the final: “It’s all because of the prime minister.”
Starmer watched the match till Harry Kane equalized for England.
Starmer said: “I began to watch the game with the Netherlands prime minister, but we left at 1-1.”
President Biden laughed and asked Starmer: “And you guys are still talking to one another?”
England went on to win the match with a late goal by super sub Ollie Watkins.
“What a game England and what a winner,” the prime minister wrote on X. “Berlin here we come!”
Starmer will attend the final in Berlin.
Biden, who said “it’s good news” that England won, called the US and UK the “best of allies” and described Britain as “the transatlantic knot” that ties NATO together.
Starmer gifts Biden Arsenal shirt
Starmer, an Arsenal fan, gifted Biden a personalised Arsenal shirt – printed with his surname and the number 46 on the back, a nod to his presidential number.
There was no reference to Biden’s re-election bid marred by concern over his age after his disastrous debate with the Republican rival Donald Trump.
Earlier, Starmer insisted Biden, 81, is not too old to be president.
However, in Britain, Starmer had proposed that peers should retire from the House of Lords at 80.
Starmer said that was a separate issue. He explained that he proposed retirement at 80 to reduce the size of the upper chamber.
“In terms of the age in the House of Lords, the simple fact is that our House of Lords is massive,” he said.
“We’ve got 800-plus members of the House of Lords, it’s simply too big. We need to reduce it.
“So it doesn’t reflect on how other elected representatives are chosen in other countries, it’s to do with the size of the House of Lords.”
‘Football coming home’ history
Starmer’s sentiments prevailed over his habitual caution when he was asked whether football was coming home and he replied, “Looks like it.”
For “football‘s coming home” is a phrase often used but seldom realized in real life. England have been champions only once.
The words are taken from the the Three Lions song sung by England fans.
“Football’s coming home” was a common chant during Euro 2020, but England lost to Italy in the final at Wembley.