England has made it to the final tournament of the UEFA European Championship exactly three times. The first time was 1968, in Italy, over 50 years ago. At that time, there were four teams competing, and England came third, losing 1-0 to Yugoslavia, then winning 2-0 against the Soviet Union. The second was in 1996 on home turf, where they drew 0-0 against Spain in the quarterfinals, winning on penalties, then lost in the semi-finals, scoring 1-1 against Germany and ironically, this time losing on penalties. The final time was this year, once again in England.
In the round of 16, on June 29th 2021, England went up against Germany, winning 2-0 and making it to the quarter-finals. Then just four days ago, on July 3rd, 2021, England managed to win against Ukraine in the quarter-finals, scoring a very impressive 4-0 and thus earning their place in the semi-finals. A probability model used by Goldman Sachs gives England “a 57.7% chance of reaching the final and a 31.9% chance of winning the tournament”.
While most of us won’t be out playing in the big leagues, there are nonetheless ways we can enjoy football and other sports locally, even from the comfort of our own homes. In fact, there are studies suggesting mental health benefits simply from watching sports. One study from the University of Chicago, titled “Sports experience changes the neural processing of action language” indicates that “experience playing and watching sports has enduring effects on language understanding”, by changing networks in our brains.
As well as watching the football, you could always come and give it a go yourself, at one of our inclusive sessions. We have Football for Adults with Disabilities, every Wednesday from 1:30-2:30pm, £3 per person and Football for SEND Children, Siblings and Friends, every Saturday from 10:30-11:30 am, £3 per person. Contact us on info@defiantsports.org.uk for more information.
Enjoy the semi finals tonight, and come along to our sessions if it gets you inspired to play football yourself!
As always, stay Defiant!
#TeamDefiant