England fans at the World Cup in the US have been going under the radar, with few arrests and many choosing to attend the US Darts Masters at Madison Square Garden instead of traditional fan gatherings. Only 10,000 England supporters are expected to travel, and there have been no arrests in three weeks.
Quiet presence in Times Square
On Friday, the day before England's Group L match against Panama, Times Square saw little English fan activity. Two men held a St George's flag with "Seaham Harbour" written on it. Joe, a flag bearer from Florida via Sunderland who works for NASA in crowd control, said: "We don't usually do dances or anything like that. We just like to do arm curls, as we call it, and have a good time." He mimed moving a glass from bar to mouth.
No trouble, different approach
The lack of media attention is largely because there has been no trouble. No England supporter has been arrested in the US during the tournament. The only polite friction occurred in Boston when some bar owners preferred serving Scots. Unlike other nations with organized fan groups, England fans do things differently. The only official event for fans on Friday was organized by Sports Direct.
Sports Direct event and darts
A ticketed watch-along was held in the basement of Carragher's bar, where Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher once held a stake. Sports Direct paid for BBC podcaster Steve Bracknell to drive a bus around the US. The event sold out with free tickets and T-shirts for those who got a Beckham mohican haircut. However, most England fans headed to the US Darts Masters at Madison Square Garden, which was packed with fans singing "Chase the Sun."
Costs and travel
Jack, from Oldham, has been in the US for three weeks, watching every England game and traveling to Los Angeles and Kansas City. He said: "It's kind of on track, but I think this weekend it's going to go out the window. I'm going to the darts tonight, so that's going to be a fortune." He noted drinks at stadiums cost $20 each: "You have a few in the ground and before you know it, that's like 50 quid just disappeared." He booked flights covering the rest of the tournament if England progress. The Football Supporters Association shared tips on eating and drinking cheaply in NYC, with many fans staying in Hoboken and Jersey City to save money.
