Preparations for Sunday’s Euro 2024 final are reaching fever pitch with retailers, pubs and airlines scrambling to meet England fans’ demand for everything from beer and burgers to replica shirts and flights.
On Thursday supporters with deep pockets were scouring the web for flights to Berlin or nearby cities and trying to secure a ticket for the final, the latter said to be changing hands for £2,500.
At home, with the weather gods promising some overdue sunshine, high street retailers including Tesco and Marks & Spencer expect food and drink sales to rocket between now and Sunday as hosts stock up for barbecues and viewing parties.
Fans who prefer a pub atmosphere have rushed to book seats at venues showing the game. In the moments after Ollie Watkins scored the winner on Wednesday evening, the number of reservations processed by the bookings website DesignMyNight soared to 16 a second, compared with the normal rate of 1.4.
Pub landlords expect to pull an extra 10m pints on the day of the final, bringing in nearly £50m in additional revenue, according to the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA), with takings likely to be boosted by extended opening hours.
The previous Conservative government proposed late-night hours if England made it to the final. The plan is expected to be approved by the home secretary, Yvette Cooper, on Friday, allowing football-loving pubgoers to celebrate – or drown their sorrows – until 1am on Monday.
Overall, the BBPA thinks England’s progress through the tournament has been worth £227m in extra beer sales. UK Hospitality, the trade body that represents the wider sector, estimates that if England are crowned European champions the industry will have benefited from an £800m uplift.
After more than 20 million people tuned in to watch England’s semi-final victory, Tesco said it had mapped sales from previous big matches and was expecting some huge numbers between now and Sunday. It thinks it will shift 1m pizzas, 180,000 packs of burgers and 800,000 packs of sausages.
All this food will be washed down with 4m packs of beer and cider, 1.2m cans of no- or low-alcohol versions and 2.5m bottles of wine, Tesco predicts. Optimism that Gareth Southgate’s team will bag England’s first silverware since 1966 will also see it sell more than 20,000 bottles of champagne.
Tesco said it had launched a “major operation” to make sure its shelves are full this weekend. “We have a well-rehearsed supply plan in place to make sure all our stores are stocked for the extra demand,” said Tesco’s ordering manager, Jason Binks.
With viewing plans sorted, fans also want to look the part, and with the clock ticking down to the final, JD Sports is offering free express delivery on England strips.
A spokesperson said: “JD’s England merchandise sales skyrocketed over sixfold for last night’s epic semi-final win against the Netherlands, having already jumped by almost three times around the dramatic victory on penalties against Switzerland in the quarter-final.”
Fanatics, the company behind the official UEFA and England online stores, said it had sold more team merchandise for Euro 2024 than any other major tournament. Semi-final day had been the biggest in sales terms, and Jude Bellingham was the top-selling player, it said.
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For those with their heart set on a seat in the Olympiastadion to hope to see football finally come home, it is likely to be an expensive few days, despite airlines including British Airways looking to provide more seats.
According to search results on Skyscanner, there were no direct flights available this Saturday to Berlin at the time of writing. Those opting to leave on Friday faced an average cost of more than £1,000, while indirect flights cost over £400.
Travel experts said connecting flights on Sunday morning via Frankfurt on Lufthansa, returning on Monday via Vienna on Austrian Airlines, were currently the best air option, coming in at just under £800.
In the hours after Wednesday’s semi-final, BA said it saw a 1,000% increase in searches for flights to Berlin on its website. “We’re currently looking at putting on additional flights and changing the aircraft type to bigger jets to accommodate as many fans as possible over the coming days,” said Neil Chernoff, its chief planning and strategy officer.
The German operator EuroWings said it had added more flights, including two extra flights from Manchester on Sunday, but they were almost fully booked.