Source: Politics<\/p>\n
Soccer is so much more than just a sport \u2014 especially in the UK.<\/p>\n
That was the central message from playwright James Graham \u2014 creator of the hit play and TV drama Dear England about the psychology of the England men’s football team \u2014 when he joined POLITICO\u2019s Westminster Insider podcast to discuss the powerful relationship between politics and the national game.<\/p>\n
For Graham, soccer\u2019s importance runs far deeper than results on the pitch. He recalled the hours after Gareth Southgate missed his penalty in the semifinal against Germany at Euro \u201896: \u201cI remember \u2026 not being able to explain in the car home with my parents why I was crying, but the tears were falling out of me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSport is never just about sport,\u201d he said. \u201cIt is about storytelling and national storytelling.\u201d<\/p>\n
As the self-styled home of soccer, England has long tied its sense of national confidence to performances in major tournaments. Graham argued that the euphoria, despite eventual defeat to Germany, around Euro \u201896 helped give voters the confidence \u201cto choose a different path\u201d and back a more youthful, confident-seeming leader the following year in Labour\u2019s Tony Blair.<\/p>\n
At a time of declining social cohesion, hollowed-out high streets and growing political division, he sees soccer as one of the few institutions still capable of bringing communities together in person, week after week.<\/p>\n
And Graham believes politicians could learn from soccer leaders such as Southgate \u2014 the man who led England to the World Cup semifinal in 2018 and back-to-back European Championship finals in 2021 and 2024 \u2014 who communicated with fans \u201cas adults\u201d in a way that was \u201cvery human\u201d and \u201cvery emotionally intelligent.\u201d<\/p>\n
At its best, Graham argues the beautiful game offers a language of identity, emotion and togetherness that politics often struggles to speak.<\/p>\n
Politics and soccer: How to play the game. Listen to the full interview with James Graham on Westminster Insider next Friday, July 3.<\/p>\n