Pubs across England face losing thousands of pounds as councils refuse to issue ultra-late licences for football fans to watch the World Cup match on Sunday night.
The Three Lions’ last-16 game against Mexico will kick off at 1am Monday UK time, with the potential for a 4am finish if the game goes to extra time and penalties.
Pubs have already seen licensing laws relaxed by the Home Office for England’s knockout games so they can continue serving punters beyond usual hours.
The tweak means they can stay open until 1am for knockout matches with kick-offs between 5pm and 9pm – including last night’s game against the Democratic Republic of Congo, which began at 5pm – and until 2am for kick-offs between 9pm and 10pm.
But no provisions have been made for games starting at 1am – meaning individual pubs must apply to their local council for a Temporary Event Notice (TEN) licence.
Officials have the power to block pubs from serving so late and can avert controversy in some areas where locals do not want the noise and hassle of an all-night party.
As the venues face a ‘Mexican standoff’ with councils, employers are bracing for a ‘mass sickie event’ on Monday morning as bleary-eyed workers sleep in.
In the past it has been common for schools and employers to allow England games in the latter stages of major tournaments to be shown when they clash with working hours, but Monday’s kick-off in the small hours poses a unique obstacle.
England fans watch the match against DR Congo at Depot Mayfield in Manchester yesterday
England fans celebrate a goal against Panama at Ultra Warehouse Derby on Saturday night
And England manager Thomas Tuchel wants families to put football before school, telling parents: ‘Write an excuse for school and let them watch football. Come on. There’s so much school to go to, but the World Cup is every four years.
‘Let them watch. There will be a big, big match on in four days and we need the support of everyone, and especially of the children.’
England fans wishing to attend the match at the iconic Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, kicking off at 6pm local time, face a wallet-busting scramble for flights and tickets.
Those who bought early through the official release to the England supporters club paid $235 for a Category 3 seat, $605 for a Category 2 and $770 for a Category 1.
The official Fifa resale platform now has Category 1 tickets for up to $35,648.85, Category 2 for up to $11,845 and Category 3 from $4,082 and $19,453.40.
On the Seatpick resale platform, tickets are selling for between £2,378 and £97,164.
The cheapest return flight from London Heathrow to Mexico City, leaving on Saturday and returning on Monday, is £3,041 with Aeromexico, according to Skyscanner.
Pub landlords are complaining that councils have refused a licence – including The Wharf Tavern in Solihull, which said other games had resulted in sales quadrupling.
Its operations manager Adam Cook said some other pubs in Solihull also had licences rejected, telling the BBC: ‘We count on these sales to help us for the rest of the year. Pubs are at the heart of the community, football is a community event, it is terrible.
On the Seatpick resale platform, tickets are selling for between £2,378 and £97,164 (above)
The cheapest return flight from Heathrow to Mexico City, from Saturday to Monday, is £3,041
‘We are fighting for every penny, with all the rising costs, we have all seen the headlines, it is hard but we are fighting back as much as we can’.
But Solihull Council said the pub applied outside the working days condition required and the law left ‘absolutely no wriggle room’, meaning the application was refused.
Applications for TENs must be made to the council at least ten working days before the event, although late TENs are available for between five and nine days.
Jason Cleary, who runs The Hodcarrier in Leamington Spa, also said his application to stay open late was declined because he did not give five working days’ notice.
Mr Cleary told the BBC: ‘If we’re playing until 3 o’clock in the morning they need to allow us to show these games, allow us to have a drink and come together.’
Warwick District Council gave the same explanation as Solihull, saying it could not legally consider a TEN submitted outside the statutory notice period.
Home Office sources indicated to the Daily Mail that that they would be surprised if there was any national shift in the overall licensing hours permitted for the match.
Boxpark venues in Croydon, Wembley, Liverpool, Camden and Shoreditch are among hundreds of venues which have successfully got TENs allowing them to stay open.
England fans celebrate their second goal in the DR Congo game at Atlanta Stadium last night
England fans sing at a screening of the match against Ghana at Boxpark Wembley on June 23
But some pubs may decide that a 1am kick-off is much less attractive financially if they need to pay staff to stay open all night, unless they expect a full house.
Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, said: ‘We remain in close contact with Government about concerns raised by publicans who want to show the match but haven’t got Temporary Event Notices in place.
‘It would be a crying shame for fans and pubs if our locals weren’t able to host such an important match.’
There are no published figures for how many pubs have applied for a Ten, and some venues would have waited for the outcome of the match against DR Congo last night.
But this will be too late for many given the notice period required. Based on previous tournaments, about 3,000 of the UK’s 46,000 pubs are likely to ask to stay open late.
Paul Crossman, chair of the Campaign for Pubs, said: ‘A lot of pubs will be trying to gauge the demand as the tournament progresses, rather than making a blanket commitment in advance.’
England were facing one of their most humiliating World Cup exits having fallen behind in the seventh minute last night to a goal from Brian Cipenga, who plays in Spain’s second division.
But they were saved by a remarkable late double from Kane whose goals resulted in a 2-1 win which sets up a difficult meeting with the co-hosts.

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