Cramlington pub reaping rewards of England's World Cup success

Thomas Tuchel’s side look destined to reach the Last-32 of the FIFA World Cup and whilst Tuesday night’s draw to Ghana was quite the snoozefest, pubs across the county have seen their takings increase dramatically.

Take the Blagdon Arms in Cramlington as an example.

Daniel Riley, an operator for Craft Union who run the pub in the village square, revealed just how much the football and weather has helped increase their takings and the mood around the pub:

“Last Wednesday [during the England v Croatia game], the takings were about four times more than usual - that was really good.

“Me and my partner worked it by ourselves and just the way the people were, the way everyone was so enthralled with the World Cup, everyone was just lovely and it didn't even feel like we'd done a seven or eight hour shift.

“It felt more like we'd been here for an hour and that was it over and done with. So it was really good.”

The Blagdon Arms is just one example of pubs up and down the county and up and down the country that show football matches on a regular basis - with Newcastle United games often drawing customers into the pub.

However, an international tournament in the summer just has a different feel about it and, unlike last World Cup that was played in winter, being able to sit in beer gardens and watch the trials and tribulations of all 48-teams out in North America, the Three Lions included, has brought a wide range of new and familiar faces to pubs once again.

“It's great that it [the World Cup] lands between obviously this season finishing and the season starting because you've got a bit of a break up between the two different competitions,” Mr Riley continued.

“It also brings out more people that you don't necessarily see because a lot more people are into international football than they are the domestic kind of football.

“So, you get a lot of new faces, you get to meet a lot of new people and the majority of them that come in are always lovely.

“So, it's just great for a business sense. It keeps us all busy and like on a personal level, we're getting to know people that you wouldn't normally get to know and being able to do anything you can for your regulars that come in on a daily basis also.

“It's just one of them things that me and all my team love.”

But of course, it isn’t just the impact England’s potential deep run in the World Cup will have on the business that excites.

The chance to see the Three Lions win their second-ever World Cup, and first on foreign soil, is something that excites England fans across the nation.

On England’s chances, he continued: “I'm quite excited for it on a personal level because we've done quite well so far and I'm hoping we can go further into the competition and maybe even win it.

“It's the first time that I'll have seen it in my lifetime so it's obviously something new and it's great for the pub, especially with the good weather.”