When Did You Stop Caring About England?

[Baz]

When I was eleven years old Michael Owen scored a proper pulse-racer for England against Argentina. At the time I absolutely loved it and Michael Owen was amazing and I thought England might win the World Cup. Michael Owen stayed amazing (and got even better over time, really - his last gasp winner(s) against Arsenal in the 2001 FA Cup Final were far and away better than anything anyone has ever done in an England shirt, for me) for the next five or six years. However, England got spaffed out the tournament later that game and I stopped caring about them.

Getting bummed out Euro 2000 by Romania actually made me laugh, and my mum and dad's neighbour who was round watching the game was well pissed off. Even D-Becks freekick against Greece to send England into the 2002 World Cup got no reaction from me. Euro 2004 was D-Beck's wobbly penalty, right? Best part about that was all the "the ball's just come through my sunroof, two days on" style jokes that came from it. I can't even remember the 2006 World Cup, and they didn't even make it to Euro 2008. 2010 World Cup was Lampards non-goal, right? I fell to sleep during that game - I remember waking up and it was 4-1, and really not being arsed I'd missed so many goals. I honestly have zero recollection of England's Euro 2012 campaign. Even looking up the matches I'm none the wiser. I remember 2014 being a complete joke, and have unwanted memories watching the Italy game in a beer garden with a load of muppets going crazy over Sterling's miss. That just reconfirmed my complete lack of interest in England, because England fans are the worst. I remember some lad singing the [proper] Steven Gerrard song, despite being a so-called United fan. I watched the Russia game from Euro 2016 in the same pub and was loving the last minute Russian equaliser cos I'd bet on a draw and had already won money on Wales.

I don't think it's because England are rubbish either, I just don't care if they win. They've always been well represented by Liverpool players too, but I'm not even really bothered about them beyond worrying if they got injured.

So for me, I stopped caring in 1998.

How about you? Or do you still support England? And is it as much as you support your club? Or more, even?

[Spikey M]

I still believe.

[Dan]

Yep, 1998 shootout did me in too. All that childish hope crushed because of David fucking Batty.

[Disco]

When I grew up.

[Mike]

I don’t think I’ve ever really cared. Like Euro 96, as soon as the final whistle went it was back outside to play football and not give it a second thought.

[Dark Soldier]

I've always cared at the big tournaments. Not arsed about qualifying or friendlies. If ya can't get behind ya country's team in a big even just go chuck yaself in the bin.

[Sir Andy Mahowry]

Probably about the same time but I stopped even 'supporting' them since about 2004/5.

[Lewis]

I've always cared at the big tournaments. Not arsed about qualifying or friendlies. If ya can't get behind ya country's team in a big even just go chuck yaself in the bin.

'This'. By all means don't cry about it, but why wouldn't you want them to win?

[Pepe]

Since the referendum.

[Yevrah]

2010 was the tipping point of a cumulative hammer blow that I've never really recovered from.

Which is possibly a good thing, given it's got worse since.

[niko_cee]

I don't think I've ever stopped caring, in the same way you can never really stop supporting a team if you're in any way a proper person, but there are always periods of resignation in both fields.

[Yevrah]

Yeah, I should add, I still care, it's the hope that's been dented.

[Browning]

Yep, don't think I'll ever stop caring. It's not going to crush me like 98 did anymore, but still.

[-james-]

I still care about England over anything else in football. I was surprised at how viscerally excited I was walking to the pub before the Tunisia game.

[Jimmy Floyd]

Some time during Mister Capello's reign a lot of the magic went out of it for me, but then that also coincided with me going into my mid-20s so it might just have been age. It's also the fact that a lot of the footballers we've produced between the 'golden generation' and now have not only been bad, but also completely devoid of any sort of humanity that might see you want to get behind them.

I can see myself reconnecting with it later on as I fundamentally love international football and I've seen all there is to see with Chelsea really. It's not like being a United fan where you have to carry on being better than Liverpool or whoever every year because it's all you've got in life.

[mugbull]

I'm guns ablaze for England this time around since the States and the Czechs are both too shit to make it to the World Cup, and England is basically Tottenham Hotspur at this point which helps make them more relevant. They'll fade into irrelevance for me as soon as the Spurs players leave/die or one of the countries i actually associate with makes it

The concept of supporting my country at the World CUp, though. C'mon. It's the best thing out there.

[Danny]

2010 was the tipping point of a cumulative hammer blow that I've never really recovered from.

Which is possibly a good thing, given it's got worse since.

Yeah, I should add, I still care, it's the hope that's been dented.

I couldnt have put it better.

[Ian]

Agree with DS, Niko and Yev. Some combination thereof.

The hope is almost entirely gone... right up until it suddenly rears its head. Bastards.

[Spikey M]

It’s coming home lads. Peckers up.