Loyalties of Anglo-French football fans tested as national sides meet for first time in competitive match for a decade
Saturday night will be a tense evening in James Parry’s house – he is a lifelong France supporter, but his wife will be rooting for England – not just because they want to see their team reach the semi-finals of the World Cup, but because the match will decide who their three-month-old baby will support for the rest of his life.
“With the birth of my son, my wife’s family think he should support England, which is a point of contention for me because I would like him to support the same team. This [game] means a lot because it’s been suggested that whoever wins on Saturday should be the team he supports – that’s probably higher stakes than the actual match,” he says.
Parry’s family in London is just one of the many dual nationality households across the UK that will see their loyalties tested when the neighbouring countries face-off for the first time in a high-profile tournament for a decade.
Parry, 38, is half-French, half-English, but his Gallic allegiances were cemented when he watched France win the World Cup on home turf in 1998. The team have performed better than England since, including winning the last World Cup. “I’ve been really lucky to watch an era where they’ve won a lot,” he says.
The strength of France’s national team has proven a pull for Laurent Derioz, 52, who is also half-French and half-English. After a childhood of being teased over his nationality, he credits Eric Cantona and Thierry Henry with making it “cool to be French”.
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