Which city woke up with the biggest World Cup hangover after England’s win over Tunisia?

Ross McGuinness
England fans in Leeds watch their team play Tunisia (Picture: PA)
England fans in Leeds watch their team play Tunisia (Picture: PA)

England fans celebrated their team’s opening World Cup win over Tunisia on Monday night in style.

But perhaps some supporters celebrated a little too much.

Researchers say workers across England failed to turn up for work on Tuesday morning because of the match the night before.

Millions watched England beat Tunisia in their opening game of the World Cup in Volgograd, Russia, and a fair few didn’t make it into the office the next day.

Harry Kane’s two goals may have had an effect on the country’s productivity on Tuesday (Picture: PA)
Harry Kane’s two goals may have had an effect on the country’s productivity on Tuesday (Picture: PA)

Data compiled by software company BrightHR show that staff absenteeism and lateness on Tuesday was 36% higher than normal.

It analysed information from 56,000 workplaces across the country to find out which areas partied particularly hard the night before to celebrate England’s 2-1 win, courtesy of two goals from captain Harry Kane.

On an average Tuesday, BrightHR’s customers record 1,435 absences and late starts in their businesses – but this increased to 2,242 the morning after England’s win.

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The city with the biggest hangover was Leeds, where there were 349 absences and late starts – making up 15% of staff.

This was more than four times the city’s average of 78 people.

Manchester was in second place, where 12% of staff were absent or late, followed by Newcastle with 11%, London with 10% and Liverpool with 9%.

Ratings peaked for the match at 18.3 million on Monday night – the biggest TV audience so far this year, beating Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding last month.

There were also a record three million requests to stream the game online via BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport, taking the peak total to 21 million viewers.

The match had an average audience of 13.7 million, according to the Broadcasters’ Audience Research Board.

Fans gather to watch the game in Millennium Square in Leeds, where many people failed to turn up for work the next day (Picture: PA)
Fans gather to watch the game in Millennium Square in Leeds, where many people failed to turn up for work the next day (Picture: PA)

Alastair Brown, chief technological officer at BrightHR, said: “There is no avoiding the World Cup, it’s everywhere, taking over TV, radio and all other forms of media.

“Large scale sporting events such as this cause havoc for employers, as football fanatic members of staff flock to watch the event in any way possible.

“Unfortunately, this often leads to employees calling in sick, forgoing their obligations to their place of work.

“I would urge any employer who is struggling with employee absenteeism issues in accordance with the World Cup and who hasn’t devised an appropriate plan of action already, to do so with immediate effect.

“You are clearly not alone in this situation, and being proactive with policies in these early stages will help you to maintain the efficiency and productivity of your business moving forward.”

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