Ed Davey (center) took to social media to share a photo of himself celebrating England's World Cup semi-final victory in a pub
Real football fans don't take good pictures. Of course, you can capture a stand celebrating a goal, a march of replica T-shirts on their way to the turnstile, or an overexcited gentleman in Leicester Square with a pyrotechnic device between his buttocks.
Everyone overlooks the nuances of team support, which includes the glory of hugging strangers and secretly checking your billing app between dishes under restaurant tables. No wonder politicians struggle when they try to jump on the bandwagon.
In exciting times like England reaching the Women's World Cup final, they all try. Rishi Sunak tweeted ahead of Wednesday's semi-finals: “Time to make history. Let's do it», words you just can't imagine. Better than his last visit to the team he ostensibly supports, waving to well-wishers and watching Southampton relegated.
It's time to make history.
Let's do it @Lionesses 🦁🦁🦁 https://t.co/scJbMddQ1Y
— Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak ) August 16, 2023
Sir Keir Starmer, reputedly a true football knight, has called for a bank holiday if England wins on Sunday. His social media photos posted during the men's Euro and World Cup games seem, like much of what he does, gritty and slightly unconvincing. The most egregious was Ed Davey, who was seen shaking his fist, perhaps in celebration, but more like a disgruntled local protesting teenagers who knocked over his trash cans. The photo couldn't have looked more staged, but at least we're talking about him and now we know he's the current leader of the Liberal Democrats.
Come on!
A phenomenal victory in the semi-final @Lionesses.
World Cup Final, here we are! #FIFAWWC https://t.co/wEzJdDxRLe
— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) August 16, 2023
Starmer and Sunak have to say something or risk being labeled unpatriotic; football is a useful label to show that you like this country. But make a mistake and it will be remembered forever. Notorious Villa fan David Cameron's brains went blank and he temporarily became West Ham. Boris Johnson claimed to support «every London team», which is a great way to show that you don't understand the sport.
Even Tony Blair, whose best tennis with Kevin Keegan can only be matched by his smirk on Downing Street with Noel Gallagher for New Labor's pop culture iconography, didn't get it all. Check out the YouTube video of him trying to hide a bouncing ball during a trip to the Far East by screwing it wide in expensive boots.
Things were better than former Australian Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce, who enthusiastically posted footage of he watches the match between Australia and France in a pub. Unfortunately, instead of a World Cup quarter-final, it was a repeat of a friendly match. “That's life,” he said. Yes, if you walk on it without paying attention.
Of course, politicians have been doing this for years. Harold Wilson was at the celebration at the Royal Garden Hotel in Kensington after the 1966 World Cup Final, encouraging Sir Alf Ramsey to take the trophy to the balcony and display it to the crowd. It's not much of a shame for Wilson, although if Gareth Southgate succeeds in Germany next year, you can imagine any force from the Prime Minister won't play well, be it Sunak, Starmer or Beanface by then.< /p>
But it is clear that the benefits outweigh the risks. There is a strong notion that the British public must feel at heart that they can go with a pint of beer for the person they choose. Forget about their financial mindset, can they drink Darkfruits? The trouble is that real football fans, and this is about a third of the population of the country, are very fond of poseurs.
Tolerance for inauthenticity is low and we are cynical about MP's motives to a greater or lesser extent. We are also good at PR. We recognize a staged photo when we see it, especially when social media is full of superficially compelling candid moments.
Politicians can't win here. We claim that we want someone «real» and crave proof of their identity, and then scold him for what he shows us. But a real football fan doesn't need a photo to prove their loyalty, they and their friends know it's true. If you're serious about the sport, you don't capitalize on it because support is almost sacred, as much a part of identity as hometown or religion.
Gordon Brown was a devoted fan of Raith Rovers, selling programs as a boy for outside Stark Park. He avoided using it as a weapon for political gain, which suggests it is true love. There will be a lesson for the Australian delegation on Sunday, Foreign Secretary James Cleverley and Lucy Fraser, currently holding the W1A position titled «Secretary of State for Culture, Media and — for some reason — Sports». Be present, but be silent.
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