London (AP) – After England’s 2-0 win over Germany in the quarterfinals of the European Football Championship, tens of thousands of throats at Wembley Stadium rang out: “Sweet Caroline, oh, oh , oh “.

It’s not entirely clear how and why American singer Neil Diamond’s 1969 song became the anthem of England fans in 2021.

But it already seems to outgrow the cult song “Football’s Coming Home”, as even “Three Lions” singer Frank Skinner had to admit after the game against Germany. “It felt like we won against Germany and we lost to Neil Diamond in overtime,” Skinner said, according to the BBC.

Neil Diamond with video message

Even Diamond learned of the unexpected popularity of his song and wished the England team good luck. “Hey, what a joy it was to hear everyone sing ‘Sweet Caroline’ at Wembley,” Diamond said in a video message to England fans, adding, “I hope they can do it again.”

Could you. Even after the 2-1 win over Denmark on Wednesday, “Sweet Caroline” was heard again at Wembley Stadium. Forward Harry Kane and England coach Gareth Southgate were delighted with the chant from the fans: “I am speechless, I don’t know what to say,” Kane said after the game against Germany. Southgate noted, “You can’t beat a little ‘Sweet Caroline’, can you?”

As the BBC discovered, the song first caused a stir at a baseball game in the United States in 2003. The song became a cult and football clubs began to play it. He was later heard at football, cricket and rugby matches in England and Australia.

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