Pubs will stay open late this summer if England or Scotland reach the Euro 2024 semi-finals, Home Secretary James Cleverly promises
- Pubs will stay open until 1am if England or Scotland secure a semi-final place this summer at Euro 2024
- The semi-finals will take place on Tuesday July 9 and Wednesday July 10
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English football fans are potentially in for a treat this summer if England reach the semi-finals of Euro 2024.
Home Secretary James Cleverly has pledged to keep pubs open later if England or Scotland manage to reach the semi-finals.
Cleverly hinted at the idea on The Sun’s ‘Never Mind The Ballots’ podcast and has since moved forward with his plans to make it a reality.
If Cleverly succeeds, football and pub fans will get an extra two hours to drink and socialize if one or both teams progress to the semi-finals.
This means the new temporary closing time would see UK pubs close at 1am on the night of the semi-finals.
Pubs in the UK are set to stay open until 1am if England or Scotland reach the Euro semi-finals.
Pubs will stay open later to allow fans to enjoy the action without fear of being kicked out if the match goes into extra time or penalties.
Home Secretary James Cleverly has pledged to allow pubs to stay open until 1am, submitting a bill to Parliament for debate today.
The Euro 2024 semi-finals are scheduled to take place on Tuesday July 9 and Wednesday July 10.
Both matches are scheduled for 8 p.m. GMT kick-off time (one hour before the UK).
The first of the two semi-finals will take place at Bayern Munich’s home stadium, the Allianz Arena.
While Signal Iduna Park will host the second match of the tournament, which will host this year’s Champions League runners-up Borussia Dortmund.
Given that host nation Germany is an hour ahead of UK time, the temporarily extended closing time would allow boozy fans to enjoy the semi-finals without having to worry about being kicked out from the pub if matches are prolonged and result in penalties.
The Home Secretary will present his plans to Parliament on Wednesday to ensure there is enough time for the subject to be discussed.
Cleverly, under section 172 of the Licensing Act 2003, it is possible to make an order relaxing licensing hours to mark occasions of “outstanding national importance”.
As mentioned, the legislation will be tabled in Parliament, so there will be ample time for it to be debated and passed before the tournament begins on Friday June 14.
Scotland will face hosts Germany in the opening match of the competition on Friday June 14.
England will begin their Euro 2024 campaign against Serbia in Group C
England fans could be in for a treat this summer as Southgate’s side are one of the big favorites to win the tournament.
Scotland will kick off the tournament when they take on Group A hosts Germany on Friday June 14.
The match is scheduled for 8pm UK time and will take place at the Allianz Arena in Munich, which can accommodate more than 75,000 people.
Gareth Southgate’s men, meanwhile, will kick off their campaign when they meet Group C opponents Serbia on Sunday June 16.
England are one of the tournament favorites after their impressive performances at the last Euro, where they were runners-up, and the 2022 World Cup where they reached the quarter-finals.
