It is the final game of the 2020 European Championship on Sunday between England and Italyand, as a demonstration of their eagerness to rally support for the Three Lions to emerge victorious, English schools are granting permissions to young pupils who may want to stay up and watch the game to do so even if it meant resuming late on Monday morning.
According to memos sent to parents and carers, some schools are willing to allow students resume two hours behind normal resumption time on Monday if they watched the game on Sunday night.
One school, Abingdon Primary School & Children’s Centre in Middlesbrough sent the following letter to parents and carers of their pupils:
“Dear Parent/Carer,
If your child is a football fan and likely to be staying up until after 11pm on Sunday to watch the Final, then let them stay in bed a bit longer and come to school by 11am on Monday. We would rather have children rested and in school ready to learn than absent all day or grumpy!
School will still be open as usual at 8.30am but children arriving up till 11am won’t be marked as late.
It’s 55 years since England reached a major football final so let them watch the game, talk about the importance of the National Anthem, talk about Aspirations, Resilience, Commitment and Harmony (ARCH). Come on England!”
Rossmere Primary School sent a similarly-worded memo, though with slight adjustment about resumption time to parents:
“If your child is a football fan and likely to be staying up until after 11pm on Sunday to watch the Final, then let them stay in bed a bit longer and come to school by 10.30am on Monday. We would rather have children rested and in school ready to learn rather than absent all day or grumpy!
School will still start at 8.40am but children arriving up to 10.30am won’t be marked as late, and they wont miss any lessons.
It’s 55 years since England reached a major football final so let them watch the game, talk about the importance of the National Anthem, talk about pride and resilience and possibly disappointment. This is a learning opportunity.”
The match is billed for 8pm (Nigerian time) and could likely drag into penalty shootout which would see it extending to about 11pm.
The last and only time that England reached the final of a major competition was in 1966 when they hosted the FIFA World Cup and defeated West Germany 4-2 at the old Wembley Stadium.
On Sunday, they will face the Azzurris of Italy at the new Wembley Stadium. Hopefully they can lift a second title and their first-ever European title.
