I can’t wait to support England at Euro 2020 – we all need a bit of togetherness

I’ll be proud of them, especially when players take the knee – a recognition that real life in and outside the game is harder for many than it ought to be, writes Katy Brand

Come on, let’s get behind the national team (PA)

I am an amateur but enthusiastic football fan and I always have been. I’m not going to pretend to be any kind of expert, though there will be no jokes about the offside rule here as it is perfectly easy for anyone to understand and broadly the same as in hockey.

There is also a family tradition of supporting Arsenal, and I have sat a fair few times cheering them on in the cold with a hot chocolate in my hands. I even played for the women’s football team at my college, though I did once have to be subbed off before I even went on as I’d pulled a muscle putting on my boots. I referred to it as a “sports injury”, which was technically correct.

I am a bit of a part-time fan then, I admit, when it comes to the domestic game. But I really do love an international football tournament. I am a sucker for a big event. And therefore I am looking forward immensely to the confusingly named Euro 2020, taking place in 2021. The England team plays its first match against Croatia on Sunday, and I will be watching, heart in mouth, cheering them on from my sofa, maybe even with a pie and a pint.