England’s national soccer team won two impressive victories on Thursday. They defeated Hungary 4-0 in a qualifying match for the 2022 World Cup, and they annihilated racist Hungarian fans in the best possible way — with a bit of cheeky English disdain and humor.
The atmosphere in Budapest wasn’t conducive to an English picnic. Entering the game, Hungary was just two points behind England, second place in UEFA’s qualifying Group I. A win would have put them in first place. The home crowd thus had reason to think they could put England off balance right from the start.
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While some of the Hungarian fans did so in sporting fashion with robust cheers, many others did so by resorting to casual racism. As England players knelt before the start of the game, boos abounded from across the stadium. This set the scene.
England’s black players, Raheem Sterling and Jude Bellingham, were both targeted with relentless monkey chants. Flares and plastic cups were thrown at all the England players, especially during the second half.
Then, in the 55th minute, came the riposte. Sterling scored and charged over to the corner flag closest to the most aggressive Hungarian fans. Many of these fans were clearly hooligans of the kind that blighted English soccer in the 1980s and 1990s.
Sterling was undeterred by the torrent of cups thrown his way. So were his fellow players. As one cup struck a celebrating Sterling in the chest, white England player Declan Rice was seen pretending to drink from a cup that had landed near him. The Hungarian racists were enraged. It was, quite simply, a beautiful moment in the Beautiful Game — a show of solidarity and resolve in face of the enemy.
Three more England goals followed. Hungary will now likely face UEFA disciplinary proceedings, and their racist fans go home losers. Their intimidation proved no match for English skill.
You can see Rice pretending to drink from the cup in the background of the video (10-second mark) below.
Declan Rice with that cup in the celebration ??? #ENGHUN pic.twitter.com/UlAw0qz5lP
— ccoulthard (@ccoulthard) September 2, 2021
