English-German families face “divided loyalties” as England get ready for the face Germany in the final of the European Championship 2022.
The teams will face off at Wembley on Sunday evening at 5pm, with the hosts aiming for their first major trophy, while Germany are chasing a ninth European Championship title.
The match will be watched by millions, including Anglo-German families across the country as they prepare for a thrilling showdown.
Darren Smeed, 56, hopes the Lionesses will come out on top, while his German wife, Tiffanyhas said Sunday’s final will be a “win-win”.
The couple, who have been married for 20 years, plan to attend the match at Mr. Forge’s childhood home in Suffolk.
Ms Smeed, 46, told the PA news agency: “I was hoping Germany or England would make it to the final and now that they have both done so, it’s a win-win situation for me.
“I feel like I’m halfway English anyway, but when I saw that Germany had made it to the final, I was very happy.
“I hope Germany win tomorrow, but if England play a better game then I’ll be happy.”
Despite backing opponents, the Smeeds said they will celebrate the popularity of Euro 2022 regardless of the outcome.
With the old rivalry between Germany and England, I know Sunday will be a highly publicized match.
“There will be friendly rivalry, but with English football we never know if we are going to win or lose or what will happen,” Mr Smeed told PA.
“With the old rivalry between Germany and England, I know Sunday will be a highly publicized game.
“Hopefully the competition will do a lot to encourage and inspire the younger generation.
“Eventually we will celebrate that, regardless of the result.”
Austin Elliot, a 60-year-old university lecturer from Manchester, is married to his wife Anita, who is from Bavaria in Germany.
And while his wife and 14-year-old son are “completely indifferent to football,” Elliot will watch the game with his 18-year-old daughter Sophie, who he says will have “shared loyalties.”
“She will have somewhat divided loyalties because she plays for a team in Britain and knows who the players are,” Elliot told PA.
‘But at the same time she got a German shirt from her German family.
“Sophie and I have watched all the games. She’s been playing football since she was eight or nine and she’s gotten more serious about it in recent years by training twice a week.
“She says it’s a win-win and she won’t worry about who wins, while I’ll be disappointed if England lose.”
Ben Stebbings, 32, from Herefordshire, and his wife Sarah Stebbings, 33, who grew up in Bavaria with English parents, live in Winchester and will watch the game together.
Despite growing up in Germany and her mother teaching several Bayern Munich players, including Thomas Muller, Sarah is likely to support England.
Mr Stebbings said: “She is happy either way, she usually supports both. Normally England don’t do very well at big events, so in the end they support because they do much better.
“If Germany scores, I don’t think she will be very upset. Deep down I think she wants England to win. I don’t think there will be too many dropouts.”
Meanwhile, Katja, 45, from Munich, and her Scottish-English husband Neil, 63, plan to watch the match together at their home in Worcestershire.
Katja, a writer and office assistant, said: “Last year, when the men’s teams were playing, I watched it upstairs in the bedroom and he watched it in the lounge.
“When England beat Germany, I cried for 15 minutes. He tried to cheer me up. I know it wasn’t his fault, but I blamed him.
“He is very peaceful about it and he even claims that he supports Germany for me, but I am not sure if that is true. He will say ‘come on Germany’ but I think he would not mind if England win .”