'Killjoy' London mayor Sadiq Khan blasted over lack of England fan zones for cheering on the Three Lions in Euros semi-final showdown against the Netherlands
At the last European football championships, supporters cheered the Three Lions to the final at two fan parks in central London.
But Mayor of London Sadiq Khan was yesterday branded a 'killjoy' for failing to arrange a fan zone – or even just a big screen – for England's Euro 2024 semi-final clash against the Netherlands tomorrow.
Sir Iain Duncan Smith, Tory MP for Chingford and Woodford Green, said the Labour mayor 'should be more generous', adding: 'Other cities have big screens for events like this which bring the community together. The mayor is being a killjoy.'
Fan Callum Ryan agreed – he flew to Germany to watch the Three Lions at a fan park in Berlin last month at a total cost of £32.95. Yet viewing a game at the Boxpark event space in Shoreditch, east London, costs only pennies less at £32.21.
The 23-year-old, from Milton Keynes, said: '[Fan zones] don't cost a great deal of money and they bring people together. I watched some of Euro 2020 at one in London and it was a much better experience than the pub.
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan was yesterday branded a 'killjoy' for failing to arrange a fan zone – or even just a big screen – for England's Euro 2024 semi-final clash against the Netherlands
Sir Iain Duncan Smith, Tory MP for Chingford and Woodford Green called the mayor is being a 'killjoy.'
Football fans react to England's first goal as they watch the UEFA EURO 2020 semi-final between England and Denmark, at a fanzone in Trafalgar square
'One of the reasons I went to Berlin was because the public fan zones were cheap to get into.'
The most recent Euros, delayed by a year to 2021 due to Covid-19, saw the tournament staged across Europe, with Wembley hosting the final.
The game, won by Italy on penalties against England, was marred by violence when 2,000 ticketless fans stormed the stadium.
But London provided a fan zone in Trafalgar Square and a 'football village' by Tower Bridge, both screening matches.
A spokesman for the Mayor of London said: 'Official fan zones are only created when London is a host city for the tournament. The Greater London Authority is exploring the possibility of a screening of the final.'
A report by VoucherCodes. co.uk has found that 26 million British football fans could boost the UK's economy by £491.4 million during the semi-finals.
