There’s no better place to kick off the 2024 European Championships than down at your local – and pubs around Buckinghamshire are excited to welcome sports fans for a summer of pints, patriotism and footie on the big screen.

With the Euros in full swing after Germany’s bruising defeat of Scotland on Friday night, England supporters are getting ready for their team to take on Serbia at the Gelsenkirchen arena at 8pm tonight (June 16).

Thousands of people across the country will be glued to their TV screens tonight, but many will also be heading down to their local boozer to indulge in that famous football camaraderie and experience all the highs and lows of the match with fellow England fans.

It’s no wonder that pubs in Buckinghamshire are erecting outdoor TV screens and laying on exclusive match-time deals in the hopes of enticing viewers to pop down for tonight’s game and others throughout the competition.

Alex Dimmock, assistant manager at The Marlow Donkey in Marlow, said the newly refurbished pub has two screens up for tonight’s England v Serbia to draw in a new crowd of football fans on top of its usual clientele.

“We’re not known as a sports pub, so we don’t usually screen matches, but it’s a way of drawing in crowds and it’s good for business. It’s going to be very busy!”

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Emma Jamieson, manager of The Stag in Flackwell Heath, which reopened just last month after changing hands, said she was also hoping to capitalise on the demand from sports fans by screening every Euro game on outside TVs, running a speciality-themed menu and offering food and drink deals during match time.

The Green Dragon, another Flackwell Heath pub also operated by Emma and her team, will similarly screen every match in the championships and hold a happy hour during each one.

Colin Dixon, manager of The Elephant and Castle in Amersham, said his pub similarly had two indoor screens that would be showing the Euros, adding that he didn’t think the excitement for the England match would make a noticeable difference to usual Sunday business.

“We’re a pretty small pub and Sundays are always busy for us anyway, but it’s nice to be showing all the games, especially for people in the community who come from a range of different nationalities.”

Mylo Puillet, who works at The General Havelock in High Wycombe, said staff were “excited” for tonight’s game to kick off, with bookings “definitely busier than most Sundays”.

He added: “We’re especially booked up today because the match has coincided with Father’s Day – it’s a great combination for us!”