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04th Jul 2018

England fans brawl in 20-person pub garden fist fight

Hooliganism is already home

Oli Dugmore

Hooliganism is already home

England’s coated in a festival vibe. Boring sad guys who normally bemoan any sporting occasion as uninteresting and irrelevant are now walking the streets of their market town, soaked in Carling, screaming “football’s coming home” into strangers’ faces.

More than 20 million people watched England win their first ever World Cup penalty shootout, awash with euphoria and joy.

Except this pub garden in Kent.

My timelines and WhatsApp groups have been filled with jubilant celebration videos. Kelly East’s Facebook video is anything but.

Around 20 people brawl in a two minute long fistfight. One man can be seen cowering for cover as others lunge towards him. The rest of the pub boo and pelt the hooligans with plastic pint cups and tinnies.

Embarrassing and tragic, the opposite of England’s victory over Colombia which was characterised by mental resilience and class.

England now face Sweden in Saturday’s quarter-final.