England fans are celebrating tonight after Jude Bellingham’s first-half goal proved to be enough for the Three Lions to beat Serbia 1-0 in the opening game of their Euro 2024 campaign in Germany tonight.
Gareth Southgate‘s men battled through a nervy second half to hold on in Gelsenkirchen – with tens of thousands of fans in the stadium and millions more watching from home breaking into ‘Sweet Caroline’ at full-time.
The nation erupted when 20-year-old Bellingham gave England a 1-0 lead just 13 minutes into the match with a sublime flying header into the top corner.
England fans showed their appreciation for the country’s golden boy by singing a rendition of The Beatles‘ hit Hey Jude after launching their pints into the air in celebration.
In stark contrast, anxious England fans were biting their nails and holding their breath in the second half as a determined Serbia threatened to ruin the night. Supporters could finally breathe a sigh of relief when the referee blew for full-time, paving the way for the celebrations to start up again.
The star-studded squad were supported by their families, WAGs and the whole nation as they won their first game of the Euros in their bid to go one better than three years ago when they lost on penalties against Italy in the final at Wembley.
The Euro 2020 final was marred by ugly scenes as ticketless fans forced their way into Wembley – and the scourge of football hooliganism made a shameful return this afternoon as England and Serbian fans clashed on the streets before kick-off.
Despite the violence and travel delays sparking chaos, tens of thousands of excited fans made it to the Veltins-Arena, while millions of England supporters packed out bars and fan zones at home.
More than 30,000 England fans – only 20,000 of whom had tickets – were in Gelsenkirchen for the clash which was designated as ‘high risk’ due to the reputation of the two fanbases.
Only low-alcohol beer was being served in the stadium in an attempt to reduce the potential for problems.
Among those in the crowd was Jordan Pickford‘s wife, Megan Davison, who arrived early wearing a cropped England shirt with her husband’s number one on. Jude Bellingham‘s parents, Mark and Denise, and footballer brother, Jobe, took selfies with the crowd, while the partners of Harry Kane, Luke Shaw, Bukayo Saka, Ollie Watkins and Conor Gallagher were all in attendance.
England’s golden boy Jude Bellingham smiles and points at the crowd after England’s win
Jude Bellingham wheels away in celebration after giving England an early lead in Germany
England fans celebrate at full-time after Gareth Southgate’s side held on 1-0 in a nervy opening game
It is the perfect start for England – but they did little to justify their billing as tournament favourites
Real Madrid and England star Bellingham celebrates after putting England 1-0 up in Germany tonight
The Real Madrid star’s flying header went straight into the top corner
England’s WAGs were all smiles in the stands after England took an early 1-0 lead against Serbia
England fans at home in London celebrate Jude Bellingham scoring their side’s first goal of the game
Fans celebrate England’s first goal of the game at the 4theFans Central Park in Brighton
England’s Euros 2024 campaign got off to the best start as the Three Lions took all three points
England’s Jude Bellingham, right, celebrates with his teammate Trent Alexander-Arnold
Tension was building in the second half as the Serbs finally found their feet
After England launched their Euros campaign in style, the Serbs were dominant in the second half
Jordan Pickford’s wife smiles and waves from the crowd, wearing her husband’s number 1
An England fans waves a St George’s flag in front of German riot police ahead of kick-off
An English fan is seen on the ground after being attacked by rivals ahead of the game between Serbia and England
After both countries belted out their respective national anthems, the highly-anticipated clash finally got underway at 8pm – with fans on both sides raising the roof in Germany.
The WAGs were seen smiling, waving and cheering as England captain Kane led the squad, playing in their traditional white strip, out to the pitch.
The Three Lions made an assured start, seeing plenty of the ball while Serbia were sitting deep.
And the pressure paid off as just 13 minutes into the game, Bellingham met a cross from Bukayo Saka with a stunning header to give England the lead – sending fans in Germany and at home wild.
Moments later, Serbia’s star striker Aleksandar Mitrović almost levelled as he tried to capitalise on a poor error from Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Midway through the first half, the pacey Kyle Walker stormed through on goal, nearly doubling England’s lead, but firing narrowly wide.
Ten minutes before half-time, Bukayo Saka breezed past the Serbian defence and searched for Phil Foden with a cutback but he couldn’t quite find his team-mate.
England’s early dominance faded in the minutes before half-time, but Southgate’s side were in a strong position at the break thanks to Bellingham’s thumping header.
Fans were seen launching pints into the air and singing ‘Its Coming Home’ in fan zones across the country.
Boxpark venues at London’s Wembley, Croydon and Shoreditch were rammed – while supporters forgot about work on Monday as they flocked to bars in Birmingham, Liverpool, Bristol and Newcastle.
Early in the second half, the England fans tried to make their voices heard as Serbia managed to get a foothold in the game.
Despite the Serbian pressure, England nearly doubled their lead again when Alexander-Arnold tested the goalkeeper with a thumping effort from outside of the box. Moments later, Bellingham weaved into the box and went down under a challenge but play was waved on by the referee.
At the 65-minute mark, the Serbs missed a crucial opportunity to level as substitute Dusan Tadic played Luka Jovic in – but the striker failed to control the ball and the chance passed him by.
England reacted to the Serbian dominance by bringing on Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher, who replaced Alexander-Arnold after 68 minutes, and Jarrod Bowen who came on for Saka shortly after.
The changes almost paid off as Kane – who had barely touched the ball all night – towered over the Serbian defence to smash a header against the crossbar via an incredible fingertip save by goalkeeper Predrag Rajković.
With less than 10 minutes to go, England keeper Pickford matched Rajković with an equally impressive save as he kept out a long-range strike to keep his side’s lead intact.