Opinion

LONDON - While England exulted at reaching a first major final since 1966, there was increasing outcry abroad over the penalty awarded for a foul on Raheem Sterling in extra time to give them a 2-1 win over Denmark in their Euro 2020 semifinal.

An array of media and football figures joined Danish fans in condemning the penalty as too cheap for such a big game, some saying England's haughty views on diving looked hypocritical in view of Sterling's tumble at the lightest of touches.

Extra time is about as entertaining as watching your parents try to pick out furniture. You’d rather be anywhere else on the planet than stuck watching extra time. Those must be the worst 30 minutes of bonus time.

After watching Italy’s performance against Switzerland on June 16 I was sold. The Azzuri were going to win Euro 2020. This team was firing on all cylinders and looked one step ahead of all the other 23 teams in the tournament. Three weeks later this team is in the final.

While the Euros roll on through the knockout rounds, we have plenty of wild fan interactions already. From fans showing up to support their team in the wrong country to pitch invaders wielding rainbow flags, anything goes as fans are enjoying their time back. Football fans were kept from stadiums and fully supporting their teams for over a year by the Covid-19 pandemic, diminished to yelling at screens instead of faces, so we wouldn't expect anything less extravagant than what has been happening. Let's take a look at the best Euro 2020 fans so far. 

When I first heard UEFA's plans to not have just one host city for Euro 2020, I was intrigued and pleasantly surprised.

The idea makes sense. Spread fans out across eleven host cities, which prevents hundreds of thousands of supporters descending on one particular country or city. It mitigates the COVID-19 risks (not something that was on the minds of organizers in 2020, but is beneficial in 2021) and helps the many host countries and cities financially without giving too much home field advantage to one country — at least in theory.

Released on June 24 on HBO Max, “LFG” is a documentary following members of the U.S. women’s national team in their fight for equal pay from the U.S. Soccer Federation. Based on the tweets from U.S. Soccer this week, I need to get an HBO Max subscription ASAP to see what has the USSF in such a tizzy.

LFG is the USWNT’s adopted slogan, an acronym for “Let’s Fucking Go!” The film, which debuted at the Tribeca Film Festival in June, appears to be “Let’s fucking go after USSF,” if a recent Twitter thread is anything to go by. 

Belgium forward Romelu Lukaku had fans ask him questions on Twitter and his responses display just why we love him. He replied to dozens of questions, including sharing his biggest motivation and even firing back at some haters, making this thread a must-see. As he lights up the pitch at Euro 2020, we look at the highlights from the Lukaku Q&A to get to know one of our favorite stars even more. 

Let’s go ask your questions