Rishi Sunak and Emmanuel Macron rekindled their bromance on Saturday, swapping tweets prior to England’s World Cup quarter-final clash with France. It was a bit of fun, diplomatic joshing, but Sunday morning will have felt a whole lot sweeter for the president of France.
He is a genuine football fan, not something that can be said of the Prime Minister, but Macron also knows how important this World Cup is for a France mired in economic and social woe. The same was true for England, and Sunak must have cursed Harry Kane more than most as he ballooned the ball over the bar from the penalty spot.
The World Cup was the last chance to end a disastrous year for the Conservative party on a positive note. Imagine if Harry and his boys had beaten the French, then the Moroccans, and triumphed in the final next Sunday. How Sunak would have led the country in celebrating the homecoming of football.
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