We’re singing for England

The Retune Blog - 14th June 2024

It’s that time of year when I start to feel super optimistic! Maybe it’s the spring turning to summer. Maybe it's the long days and plenty of sunshine. Or maybe it’s because its long enough from the end of the last football season for me to forget about all the West Ham disasters and to start to get excited by all the possible new signings (that usually don’t occur) before the start of the next season.

Every other year this optimism is also increased by another footballing event, and of course now it’s the start of the Euro 2024 Championships. And that is a great excuse to look at some of the most iconic football songs of all time, starting this week with the England song for Italia 90, New Order’s World in Motion:

Love's got the world in motion and I know what we can do.

Football at the end of the 1980’s wasn’t in a great place in terms of hooliganism, violence and its reputation. But many people say Italia 90 was a turning point. I think there has always been an interesting relationship between football and society. Football is both influenced by society and has the opportunity to be an influencer of it. And in many ways the lyric above reflects this. New Order admit they weren’t really football fans, and yet there is hope reflected in the lyrics that when people come together, with football as the medium, something good can happen.

For me though, one of the best lines in the song is:

Express yourself, create the space.

One of the things that is so closely related to optimism for me is hope, and hope is connected to possibility. Creating the space to express who you are, whether it be on the football field, or in life more generally provides a great way of opening up and living in possibilities.

But what does this look like practically? I think it means literally creating the time and space to think, feel and day dream. For me, creating this space for myself is just as important as any other part of my working life, so I try to do it in a way which builds on and supports the rhythms I already have rather than competing with them. In some ways this individualisation is also reflected in the song:

You've got to hold and give but do it at the right time. You can be slow or fast but you must get to the line.

So, as I listen to this classic football anthem once again, it’s just a little reminder to make the space for me to be me, and to do it my way.

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