New footage has emerged of an England fan appearing to lead the chants of ’10 German bombers’ on the streets of Dusseldorf ahead of the Three Lions’ clash with Serbia tonight.
The tattooed lout wears a replica of an England away shirt – which retails for £85 – as he sits on someone’s shoulders with an inflatable RAF Lancaster toy in one hand and a bottle of lager in the other.
He raises his arms and smiles as he encourages the crowd to clap to the chant as he throws the plane at another fan before enthusiastically pumping the air as he continues to sing the derogatory song.
‘Ten German bombers’ – sung to the tune of ‘If You’re Happy and You Know It’ – refers to German victims in the Second World War.
It comes after German police warned supporters to ‘don’t be advertising***!’ while the FA wrote a stern letter saying fans risk having their tickets taken away if they do not behave properly.
Do you know the man in the video? Email matt.strudwick@mailonline.co.uk
New footage has emerged of England’s ‘leader’ leading the chants of ’10 German bombers’ in the streets of Dusseldorf
The tattooed lout wears a replica England shirt as he sits on someone’s shoulders, holding an inflatable RAF Lancaster toy in one hand and a bottle of lager in the other
He raises his arms and smiles as he throws the plane at another fan before pumping the air into the air as he continues to sing the derogatory song.
The song has been heard regularly during England matches, including their recent 3-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina on Monday night.
There are fears that this will be heard frequently in the eurozone and despite the warning from the German authorities, they are powerless to stop this.
According to The Telegraph, police chief Peter Both said: ‘That’s what I would say to them: don’t be advertising***. When they sing a song like that, I can’t change it.
‘It is not a criminal offense in Germany. I hope all the other peaceful and law-abiding fans tell them, “Stop it.”
‘I know, and all people in Germany know, that there is a long-standing sporting rivalry between England and Germany. But it is important for me to say that it is only a sporting matter.
“Our countries have been and will remain allies for more than seventy years.”
The images also prompted the FA to write a letter to the England Supporters Travel Club the imaking it clear that ‘any unacceptable behavior whilst following England may result in… withdrawal of future match tickets (including during the tournament)’.
The letter added: “The FA will not tolerate excessive behavior and will always investigate reports of inappropriate behavior with the utmost urgency,” the statement said.
‘Members are ambassadors for the England team and must conduct themselves in a way that will continue to improve the image of England supporters and the national side on the world stage.’
The FA will have their own security and stewards at all English matches in the coming days, and will insist they will tackle any fans misbehaving in Germany.
England fans have been warned that their tickets could be confiscated if they misbehave at Euro 2024
The FA – led by chief executive Mark Bullingham (pictured) – has told supporters that ‘unacceptable behaviour’ will not be tolerated
German police have asked English fans not to sing ’10 German Bombers’ during the European Championship
Police chief Peter Both admitted police will be powerless to arrest supporters singing the song, but has urged Three Lions fans not to ‘advertise ***’ during the match
Tensions are already high ahead of the Group C match in Gelsenkirchen, with fears that 500 hardcore Serbian ultras could target the English (photo: Red Star Belgrade fans at the Rajko Mitic on May 13 in a match against FK Radnicki 1923)
Red Star Belgrade fans at the Rajko Mitic on May 13 in a match against FK Radnički 1923
Tensions are already high ahead of the Group C clash in Gelsenkirchen, with fears that 500 hardcore Serbian ultras could target the English in the west German city.
Police have labeled the tie as ‘high risk’ because it is the only match at the tournament where low-alcohol beer is served to avoid problems.
German police have been working with authorities from London and Belgrade to prevent ugly scenes in the areas around the stadium and during the match itself.
Mr Both told me The guard that officers in the country did not have ‘concrete intelligence, concrete information’ at this stage.
But they think that ‘up to 400 to 500 violence-seeking Serbian hooligans will travel to Germany, but we don’t know exactly and that is our problem at the moment’.
He added: “I think the biggest challenge for us will be to identify violent, disruptive groups at an early stage, to separate them from peaceful and law-abiding fans.”
Do you know the man in the video? Email matt.strudwick@mailonline.co.uk