I am conflicted over this whole subject of football and flags, in fact over international sport in general. I stopped watching the Olympic games in 2004, Athens being the last one I watched. The modern Olympics had gone from a celebration of amateur sport to a professional based celebration of Country. Ironically this happened once the British aristocracy lost control of the modern games. I have continued watching international football because, again ironically, it is the one form of the game, apart from kick abouts in the park, where you can't just buy players to improve your chances, although they are stretching the rules of nationality as far as they can to get those 'best' players. I am sometimes uncomfortable with my support for Spurs and this will no doubt increase when things like the ESL are muted. That ESL incident did pretty much unite football fans in their condemnation and this shows where my confliction lies. Those same football fans are celebrating the success of Southgate's England team and wrapping themselves in the flag of St. George, which is more appropriate than the Unions Jacks that were mostly in evidence in 1966. What happens next is where in my opinion it starts to go wrong. As long as the England football team fails the issue does not arise but as soon as there is a measure of success huge numbers of the non footballing English population start joining the celebrations. From politicians to racists, xenophobes, and little Englanders and any number of unsavory characters. I have to tell you that despite being English and having spent most of my life in England I don't actually like the English very much, many people are excepted from that of course, including friends and relations and many millions of decent English humans. Why because basically the English keep voting for the Tories and keep supporting Thatcherite policies. They vote for a moron like Boris, no doubt because he made them laugh on TV. We have much in our history to be ashamed of but consistently here from proud little Englanders. When I first left the UK in 1963 my eyes were immediately opened to how backward Britain was compared to places like Germany and France and Scandinavia. It still is in my view and Brexit just about sums up the English postion. All of this leads me to feel not just uncomfortable but angry with this thinking that winning a football match somehow justifies their narrow minded views.
Sing your songs if you like and wave your support but just be aware of how you are being used by others with their own agenda.