England's unexpected World Cup success has left many fans scrambling to rearrange plans, as the quarter-final against Sweden kicks off at 15:00 BST on Saturday. With 23.6 million viewers tuning in for the penalty shoot-out win over Colombia, the match against Sweden is set to cause further disruption for those with conflicting commitments.
Two England fans on holiday in Portugal, Michael Simpson and Tom Dillon, decided to cancel their flight back to London from Lisbon to avoid missing the game. They will now watch the match in Lisbon before flying from Faro on Sunday, costing them an extra 130 euros each. 'It's a childhood dream to see England win the World Cup,' said Michael. 'So whether that meant staying in Portugal or coming back early, we just couldn't miss it.'
Music festivals are also adapting. Wireless Festival in Finsbury Park will pause the main stage acts to screen the game, with 6Lack finishing his set at 14:55. However, British Summer Time Hyde Park will continue as planned, with Editors' set clashing with the match. Festival director Jim King explained, 'People paid a lot of money to come and see all of those bands.' Meanwhile, Sunniside Live in Sunderland will show the game on a double-decker bus, with headliners The Lightning Seeds—co-writers of football anthem 'Three Lions'—performing later.
The musical Mamma Mia!, written by Swedish musicians Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, has a matinee showing at the same time as the match. The interval will coincide with the second half, and the score will be announced to the audience. A spokeswoman said, 'If it is a good result for England, we are planning to announce the final score at the end of the show.'
Paul Leadbeater and Marita Phenix, who planned their wedding at Sunderland's Stadium of Light to avoid match clashes, have had to postpone the ceremony to 17:15 to accommodate the game. The match will be screened in one of the bars, but Paul admitted, 'My fiancée will be watching too, just not with me.' He remains optimistic, saying, 'I'm not thinking about England not winning.'
