World Cup fever wasn’t exactly rampant in Darlington as fans gathered to watch England’s first game today (Monday, November 21) - but the team certainly played their part on the pitch.
This year’s World Cup is being played against a backdrop of controversy over Qatar being picked to host the international tournament.
There has been widespread criticism of the Arab state’s questionable human rights record and the deaths of migrants who built the stadiums.
This, coupled with the tournament interrupting the English domestic football season, has led to some fans boycotting the 2022 World Cup altogether.
However, many still flocked to Newcastle's Central Park fan zone to watch England’s first game, a 1pm kick-off against Iran, and North East hospitality venues are doing their best to entice people out to watch the action.
One venue that has the flags and bunting out is Darlington’s Covered Market which is showing every England game on a giant screen.
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The Market Tap is offering special drinks deals and tables are bookable to ensure fans can secure themselves a seat with a prime view of the action.
Market manager Michael Harvey acknowledged that mid-day kick-offs and the questionable decision to host the tournament in Qatar has muted the hype that normally surrounds the World Cup, but he hopes the hospitality industry will still receive a much-needed boost in trade.
He said: “The timings are not ideal, the next couple of 7pm kick-offs should be better.
“Some people are going to take it off work to watch and we’ll have a few students in so it’s good to do it for them.
“These sporting events are quite important for retail and hospitality, they normally bring a lot of people through the door and if you are not able to monopolise on that, it feels a bit flat.
“It is disappointing, especially when it has been such a tough economic and social climate, everything that we’ve been through in the last few years, it would have been good to have a big unifying event for everyone and for it to be a success for retail and hospitality.”
Darlington construction manager Mark Kilcran was among the 20 or so fans watching Monday’s game in the Covered Market, having booked the day off work especially for it.
He said: “The build-up has not been as fun for it, it doesn’t really feel like the World Cup.
“We reserved a table thinking it would be busy, but it isn’t really.
“It’s a shame because the World Cup has a bit of a festival atmosphere when it’s in the summer and it brings people together.”
Manchester United fan Josh Patchett of Newton Aycliffe also took the day off from work in retail banking to watch the England game in Darlington but acknowledged the muted atmosphere surrounding the tournament.
He said: “It think it’s all a bit strange to be honest, there are a lot of moral issues that are not really acceptable (about Qatar).
“I am nowhere near as excited as I normally would be, I don’t really think it feels like a World Cup, it just feels a bit off.”
One group who thankfully appear unaffected by the mixed feelings around this year’s tournament are the England players themselves who put on an accomplished display to win their opening match 6-2.
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