Assuming England get through the game with DR Congo, some pubs could be struggling to stay open until the game which kicks off at 1am.
England fans could struggle to find a boozer for the Mexico clash (if it happens) (Image: Getty)
Pubs have been told they can open late for England’s last 16 clash with Mexico on Monday – but only if they get permission.
England face DR Congo in the round of 32 at 5pm today (Wednesday, July 1) and Thomas Tuchel’s men will breeze through that easy tie to book a date with Mexico on Monday, July 6 (many have assumed).
But the snag is that England’s next theoretical knockout tie, against Mexico, will kick off at 1am on Monday.
During the World Cup, pubs were given special permission by the Home Office to extend licensing hours to 1am, or to 2am for late kick offs.
But the rules currently in place only allow for a 2am closing time for matches that kick off between 9pm and 10pm, so the England v Mexico game wouldn’t qualify, the Department for Communities and Local Government has confirmed to the Express today.
Instead, pubs will have to write to their local council to get special written permission from the local authority to open later, which could be as late as 3.30am if there’s extra time and a dreaded penalty shoot-out.
The government told the Express that pubs can extend hours later by applying to their council with a ‘Temporary Event Notice’, and that the Secretary of State for Communities Steve Reed has already written to councils to encourage the applications to be approved.
However, it’s down to councils to make the final decision and some are already proving difficult.
According to the BBC, landlord Jason Cleary, who runs The Hodcarrier in Leamington Spa, said his application to stay open late to show the match was ‘refused’ because he “didn’t give five working days’ notice” after he submitted it on Monday.
Warwick District Council told the BBC that it was legally not able to consider Temporary Event Notices (TENs) submitted outside the statutory notice period of five working days. It stressed that it did not refuse the application, but that it has no power to approve it because it was submitted with only four working days to go before the event, and it did not count the date of submission as a working day.