The Best Football Match I’ve Ever Seen

The power of football to lift the soul

Photo by Mahmut Yıldız on Unsplash

For most of the year, I couldn’t give a monkey's about football, but when it comes to England at the World Cup, I am fiercely patriotic.

Football gave me two core memories. The first was during the 1990 World Cup, when England played West Germany in the semi-finals. England midfielder Paul Gascoigne began sobbing after receiving a yellow card, knowing it would mean he’d miss the final if England advanced.

It was a poignant display of passion and vulnerability in response to a shattered dream. To add to the heartbreak, England went on to lose the game in a penalty shootout.

The second core memory came on July 6. England were playing World Cup co-hosts Mexico at the Azteca Stadium, kicking off at 1 a.m. UK time. Earlier in the week, my brother, with his encyclopaedic football knowledge, was all doom and gloom when we talked about the match over lunch.

The odds were heavily against us. Mexico had the home advantage. We’d be playing in thin air at an 87,000-capacity stadium filled with raucous Mexican supporters against a team acclimatised to playing at an altitude of 7,220ft. Mexico hadn’t lost a competitive game at the Azteca since 2013 and had gone unbeaten, keeping eight clean sheets in the 10 World Cup matches played there. This included the three matches played during the 2026 tournament before Mexico’s encounter with England.

From what my brother was saying, England was bound to lose. It was delusional to think otherwise. This was his advice. Don’t bother staying up to watch. Don’t get invested.

But when it comes to England in a major football tournament, I follow my heart over my head. Although the match was on a school night and I value my sleep, I could go to bed early, wake up to watch the game, and go back to bed afterwards.

A couple of days before kick-off, it looked like my beauty sleep sacrifice wouldn’t be necessary. FIFA was considering moving the match forward six hours to a more family-friendly viewing time of 7 p.m. in the UK, due to a forecast of storms and fears of lightning and flooding around the Azteca Stadium.

However, the English and Mexican football associations objected to the time being changed less than 48 hours before kick-off. They had the impact on fans’ travel plans and the teams’ preparations to consider. An earlier kick-off would mean 3,000 travelling England fans would miss the match. In the end, FIFA stuck to the scheduled start time.

The day before the big game, I went out with the family for a late Sunday roast for lunch. We were so full, we skipped dinner, and I grabbed the opportunity to have an early night after setting an alarm to wake at 1 a.m.

I woke to discover kick-off was delayed an hour because of the weather. After bringing my pillow from the bedroom, I reset my alarm to 2 a.m. and attempted to sleep.

England got off to a brilliant start, but even after Jude Bellingham’s two first-half goals, just 98 seconds apart, victory never felt like a foregone conclusion. Mexico looked dangerous throughout the match and managed to pull a goal back after Julián Quiñones’ strike before halftime.

England’s Jarell Quansah almost got away with a dangerously high tackle, but a VAR review gave the referee no choice but to issue a red card, leaving England to defend its fragile lead with only 10 men.

England’s Anthony Gordon’s second-half surge towards the goal drew a foul from the Mexican goalkeeper for a penalty, which captain Harry Kane converted, giving the team a 3–1 lead. A second VAR review caused England to concede a penalty for Kane kicking a Mexican player in the box. Raúl Jiménez converted, and it was 3–2.

At this point, England still had 30 minutes left of the game against a Mexican team with an extra man. The match stats reflect the relentless pressure England faced: Mexico had 67% of the possession with 20 shots on goal.

It was a tremendous defensive effort with England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford making key saves. England continued to hold off the Mexican opposition for an agonising 11 minutes of added time.

There I was on my own, watching a crazy, wild, amazing, incredible, extraordinary and epic game I would remember for the rest of my life, silently cheering for England so I wouldn’t wake the rest of the family.

I relished the solitude.

The thing is, when people watch a football match they care about, everyone has something to say. While I sat in my living room between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m, I didn’t have the usual distraction of my husband or son challenging the validity of my opinions.

I was buzzing, in the moment, caught up in the glorious, emotional distraction a game of football can bring. Something to believe in, root for and hope for.

This was a match worth waking up at 1 a.m for.

After their win, Three Lions players joined their fans in a singalong of Oasis’s Wonderwall, leaving Harry Kane so hoarse that he sounded like a man on helium during his BBC post-match interview.

[embed]Credit: BBC Sport

England was resolute. They showed heart, belief, resilience and grit when conquering adversity to secure victory over Mexico. It was a performance that made me proud to be British.

Thanks for reading my story.