Notes from the European Football Championship

From REAGAN to PUSKAS: On Freedom Square (Szabadság tér) in Budapest, it reminds a lot of the USA. This is not surprising, after all, this is where the US Embassy in the Hungarian capital is located. For example, there is a statue of former US President Ronald Reagan. But during the World Cup, the focus there was also on football. There is a public display and a small exhibition of the Hungarian national football team – with portraits of legend Ferenc Puskas or RB Leipzig’s Dominic Zuboszlai, who photographed the Hungarian for the European Championship but missed the tournament due to a prolonged injury to the pubic bone.

Proud Mama: Mum was very happy. After Scotland’s strong performance by Billy Gilmore in the 0-0 draw against England, Carrie Gilmore loved to speak up. “I’m very proud of you. My heart explodes with pride. I love you so much,” the mother tweeted. Captain Andy Robertson paid tribute to the 20-year-old from Chelsea. “He has a great future ahead. The Liverpool professional said.

Honor Days: Did that make it a carefree fun? After the 1-1 draw against the Czech Republic, two select players celebrated their birthdays. Andrej Kramaric (1899 Hoffenheim) and Mile Skoric (NK Osijek) turned 30 on Saturday. Wolfsburg’s Josep Pricalo should be doing better in FL. He will turn 23 on Wednesday, the day after Glasgow’s game against Scotland. Will Croatia be in the last sixteen?

Would you be happy to drink? If you believe the Romanian and North Macedonian media, then the North Macedonian football fans in Bucharest have proven themselves to be particularly heavy drinkers. The online portal “makfax.com.mk” reported on Saturday that about 4,000 supporters of the largest offshore company in emerging markets destroyed an incredible 70,000 to 75,000 liters of beer in four days. The portal relied on unspecified “Romanian media”. It remains to be seen if the report is correct. This means that each fan drinks about 4.7 liters of beer per day. It’s not impossible, but it’s also healthy – and it didn’t help either: after two matches in Bucharest, before the final group game in North Macedonia in the Netherlands on Monday, it was clear that the tournament would be over after the preliminary round. Football dwarf.

Rubles for more tourists: According to Deputy Governor Boris Piotrovsky, Saint Petersburg Stadium contributes to the European Championship by about 700 million rubles (about 8.1 million euros) from its budget for the implementation of the tournament. “We are currently studying whether we can be supported from the federal budget by at least 200 million rubles,” he said recently. The capital on the Gulf of Finland hopes to increase the number of tourists from emerging markets, as well as additional income from taxes and financing as a sports center. Local restaurateurs expect the tournament to partly make up for lost income during the coronavirus pandemic. However, the 2018 World Cup showed that hope is often higher than reality.