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Sheffield could host England's only World Cup homecoming event England players return to muted reception in Birmingham
(35 minutes later)
Sheffield could host England’s only World Cup homecoming celebration after the city’s mayors declared it a “no-brainer” to mark the region’s contribution to the squad. England’s World Cup squad landed at Birmingham airport to a muted fanfare as they were greeted by a few hundred supporters behind barbed-wire fences.
The England manager, Gareth Southgate, has opposed the idea of a national public parade to celebrate England reaching the semi-finals. Fans had been warned to stay away from the airport but about 400 cheered and clapped as the charter jet landed at 3.50pm on Sunday – 10 minutes before the World Cup final kicked off in Moscow.
Yet there remains a keen enthusiasm among civic leaders in South Yorkshire to celebrate the fact that a quarter of the 23-man squad comes from the region. The England manager, Gareth Southgate, had insisted there should be no official homecoming party despite overseeing the most successful campaign since 1990, when 200,000 people turned out for an open-top bus parade in Luton to welcome the team back from their semi-final defeat on penalties by West Germany.
Harry Maguire, Kyle Walker, John Stones, Jamie Vardy and Danny Rose are all from South Yorkshire. Gary Cahill is from just south of Sheffield in Dronfield, Derbyshire, while Fabian Delph is from Bradford in West Yorkshire. The scene at Birmingham airport was far more low-key. Some fans had criticised the airport on social media, accusing “killjoy” officials of spoiling the party when it “strongly advised” supporters to stay away.
Dan Jarvis, the Labour MP and Sheffield city region mayor, said on Sunday it was a “no-brainer” to celebrate the success of South Yorkshire-born players but that it was for the city council to approve. Huddled behind a perimeter fence in the afternoon sun, the crowd of supporters struggled to catch a glimpse of the players as they stepped from the charter jet that had left St Petersburg’s Pulkovo airport about three and a half hours earlier.
Live footage from a television helicopter showed captain Harry Kane assemble his team-mates on the airplane steps for a final team photograph before they all hugged and went their separate ways, but not before Raheem Sterling was seen playing with a football on the tarmac.
A smattering of flag-waving supporters lined the streets as the players were whisked away in a convoy of Mercedes-Benz cars.
England’s understated return was in sharp contrast to the scenes in Brussels, where jubilant fans greeted the Belgian national team during an open-top bus parade on Sunday. The celebration came a day after Belgium beat England 2-0 in the third-place playoff in St Petersburg.
Earlier on Sunday, the Labour party urged government ministers to “capitalise on the renewed passions for the national team” and bid to host the 2030 World Cup. It has been 52 years since the World Cup was last held in England and the 2030 tournament will mark the tournament’s centenary.
Meanwhile it has emerged that Sheffield could host England’s only World Cup homecoming celebration. Harry Maguire, Kyle Walker, John Stones, Jamie Vardy and Danny Rose are all from South Yorkshire. Gary Cahill is from just south of Sheffield in Dronfield, Derbyshire, and Fabian Delph is from Bradford in West Yorkshire.
Dan Jarvis, the Labour MP and Sheffield city region mayor, said it was a “no-brainer” to celebrate the success of South Yorkshire-born players but that it was for the city council to approve.
He said: “Players from our region have made an outstanding contribution to the World Cup. We should find an appropriate way to both recognise their achievements and maximise the legacy benefits for the next generation of talent.He said: “Players from our region have made an outstanding contribution to the World Cup. We should find an appropriate way to both recognise their achievements and maximise the legacy benefits for the next generation of talent.
“In general terms, I think it’s an absolutely fantastic idea. I think there would be a lot of support for it. Any event like that would be very well-attended and it would be a really good thing to demonstrate our thanks and a recognition of the contribution of players from the region to the England team in the World Cup.”“In general terms, I think it’s an absolutely fantastic idea. I think there would be a lot of support for it. Any event like that would be very well-attended and it would be a really good thing to demonstrate our thanks and a recognition of the contribution of players from the region to the England team in the World Cup.”
Given that there are currently no plans to host a reception in London, a public event in Sheffield would be the country’s only homecoming celebration for the England team. Any civic event would have to be signed off by Sheffield city council, whose leader, Julie Dore, had been keen for the city to play a significant role in any celebration of Southgate’s team. Dore wrote to the FA chief executive, Martin Glenn, before England’s semi-final defeat inviting the organisation to host any “welcome home” party in Sheffield.
Any civic event would have to be signed off by Sheffield city council, whose leader, Julie Dore, had been keen for the city to play a significant role in any celebration of Southgate’s team.
Dore wrote to the FA chief executive, Martin Glenn, before England’s semi-final defeat to Croatia on Wednesday night inviting the organisation to host any “welcome home” party in Sheffield.
The lord mayor of Sheffield, Magid Magid, said on Sunday he was “100% in favour” of hosting a civic reception and would urge his council colleagues to organise it as soon as possible.The lord mayor of Sheffield, Magid Magid, said on Sunday he was “100% in favour” of hosting a civic reception and would urge his council colleagues to organise it as soon as possible.
While the England players are all expected to go away on holiday after their return to Birmingham airport from Russia on Sunday, it is hoped that any event could be held at the town hall before the start of the Premier League season on 10 August. Birmingham
Magid proposed inviting South Yorkshire’s six homegrown players to a civic event in the lord mayor’s parlour before hosting a celebration on the balcony of Sheffield town hall, where the players could address the crowds. England
The eccentric lord mayor, who recently made headlines for branding Donald Trump a “wasteman” and saying he was banned from Sheffield, said the starring role for the region’s England players had been a “badge of honour” for the city.
He said Sheffield was also the “home of football” as Sheffield FC is the oldest club in the world and the rules for the modern game were first written down in the city.
“Everyone has been nothing but proud. It’s been a case of the Sheffield brothers bringing football back to its true home,” he said. “It really united people regardless of faith or background. There was a real sense of hope at a time when we need it as a country.”
The former sports minister Richard Caborn, who fronted England’s ill-fated bid to host this year’s World Cup, said he too would write to the council to support a public event. “Gareth Southgate has understandably said he doesn’t want a big, national, open-top bus parade and I appreciate that and respect that,” he said.
“But I also think it would be good if we, in Sheffield and South Yorkshire, actually did something to recognise the contribution that our young people have made to England’s great success on and off the park.”
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