England all over the world

As England and Australia met for the World Cup final, expatriate English fans in many countries were cheering their side on. NICK HARRIS talks to some of them.

RUSSIA

EXPAT: Andy Keeley.

OCCUPATION: Research analyst.

VENUE: Sportland casino-bar, Moscow, noon.

How was it for you?

I paid a stranger two quid to drive me across town through the snow in his clapped-out old Lada. The match was being screened in a rundown dive with massive bouncers. Entry cost US$20.

It was packed with 200 people - English, Australian and some bemused locals playing roulette and gambling on dog races from England. There was one screen and it's normally reserved for the dogs.

The match coverage was taken from a South African satellite feed with a dodgy reception. It didn't matter ...

As soon as the final whistle went, the manager switched over to the 11.51 live from Crayford. Uproar. The security men got jittery and switched back for the trophy presentation.

MONGOLIA

EXPAT: Dominic Graham.

OCCUPATION: Project manager.

VENUE: Block 13, microdistrict 220, Ulan Bator, 5pm.

How was it for you?

Glad to be out of the chill (minus 16C), I waited for my fellow England supporters in the lobby at the Bayangol Hotel. Not wanting to stay at the bar, which was crowded with Canadian miners, we scuttled round the corner to a nearby apartment block.

Waltzing Matilda ringing in our ears, we crept round piles of rubbish up three flights of unlit, cracked concrete steps. The moment we stepped through the padded entrance doors it was clear we were outnumbered. Australian flags covered every bare patch of wall.

A swaying group crowded round the TV while our host struggled to find Australian match commentary on the internet. He failed. We had the choice of Chinese or Russian.

When Jonny sealed the game, but before the English could properly savour victory, the city intervened. There was a power cut.

NEW ZEALAND

EXPAT: Katy Horwood.

OCCUPATION: Bookseller.

VENUE: Neighbour's place, 10pm.

How was it for you?

I watched with three neighbours, all Kiwis, and we made it a special occasion with crayfish and wine. None of us has anything against Australia's sportsmen but we all hate their media and the way they crow when Australia win.

One of the other things I enjoyed - and I'm not a royalist - was seeing Prince Harry taking such pleasure in England's win. I liked his energy.

JAPAN

EXPAT: Emily Richardson.

OCCUPATION: Teacher.

VENUE: Sports bar, Kobe, 6pm.

How was it for you?

There were so many foreigners, so much beer, cheering, excitement and patriotic passion that for a moment I was disoriented and forgot that I was in Japan. I felt at home and home-sick all at once.

The bar we found was so packed that we had to stand in the doorway and could barely see anything at all. I had to rely on some New Zealander friends talking me through the action on my mobile.

ZAMBIA

EXPAT: Dominic Eastham.

OCCUPATION: Volunteer Service worker.

VENUE: McGinty's Bar, Lusaka, 11am.

How was it for you?

There was a cosmopolitan crowd of around 100 but few locals, who were deterred by ludicrous drink prices and general apathy.

A group of Aussies had painted their faces, but English support was dominant, with a Union Jack draped on the mounted head of an antelope.

The place went mad after that drop goal. Strangers embraced, beer was sprayed and a lengthy conga line went outside.

"It's just like being in a pub back home," said a friend. "Yes," I said. "Except for the pool of crocodiles you pass on your way to the toilets."

FRANCE

EXPAT: Marcus Graham.

OCCUPATION: Accountant.

VENUE: The Bowler pub, Paris, 10am.

How was it for you?

Inside, there was a steaming throng of hundreds of England supporters who could be heard a street away. Robinson's try and Wilkinson's kicks set off seismic celebrations that shook the neighbourhood.

The French had lost all enthusiasm for the tournament after the semis, but the occasional curious local, carrying breakfast in a paper bag, did peer in through the misted windows.

When Wilkinson kicked the decisive drop goal the place went wild. The delirium produced a strangely continental twist with men kissing each other on both cheeks, and the cheers, songs, champagne, horn-honking and shouting continued long into the Parisian afternoon.

FALKLAND ISLANDS

EXPAT: Julie Clarke.

OCCUPATION: Landlady.

VENUE: Globe Tavern, Port Stanley, 6am.

How was it for you?

I got up at 4.30am to a beautiful, sunny, cloudless day. We opened the pub at 5.30am to serve full English breakfast before kick-off. There were about 60 people, including a handful of Aussies. The atmosphere was brilliant, then nail-biting.

Because we needed to get ready for a lunchtime tourist party of several hundred from a cruise ship, I had to ask the rugby lads to go outside after the match. They bought a crate of beer each and went into my beer garden, where the party really got going - at 9am.

USA

EXPAT: Kevin Jones.

OCCUPATION: Draftsman.

VENUE: Back garden, Washington DC, 4am.

How was it for you?

We erected a big screen, 9ft by 5ft (2.7m x 1.5m), in the garden, and invited about 20 people over. They came round about 3.30am after we'd met up in different bars earlier. We woke up the whole neighbourhood with the cheering. It was just magical. Even a couple of the Americans thought it was exciting.

IRAQ

EXPAT: Major Ben Richards.

OCCUPATION: Soldier.

VENUE: Former departure lounge of Basra Airport, noon.

How was it for you?

It was a fantastic way to spend a brief bit of time off. It was a nice sunny day, there was a good atmosphere and a crowd of about 100.

One of the old departure lounges in the airport has been converted to a dining hall. We've had a big screen there for the whole tournament with ITV relayed via the forces broadcasting service.

TONGA

EXPAT: Paul Nessling.

OCCUPATION: British High Commissioner.

VENUE: Back garden at Australian High Commissioner's home, Nuku'alofa, 10pm.

How was it for you?

Driving over there, the streets were empty. The whole of Tonga was inside watching the final. There were about 50 at the party, including Australians, New Zealanders and Tongans, watching on a big screen.

You couldn't have had two better sides or been more on the edge of your seat. We all had a glass of champagne at the end. The Australians were a bit sad, but we're all great friends - and everyone recognised what a great player Wilkinson is.

We already get a lot of applications from young Tongans who want to play rugby in England. I can envisage even more now.

FIJI

EXPAT: Peter Forster.

OCCUPATION: Head of psychology, University of the South Pacific.

VENUE: Home (block of flats in Suva), 9pm.

How was it for you?

It was one of the rare times in my four years here that I wished I'd been in England.

During the match, I could hear all my neighbours. On one side, the Fijians were drinking kava and beer, singing and supporting Australia. One of the Wallabies, Lote Tuqiri, is from Fiji.

The Indian women on the other side chatted in their kitchen while their men watched TV, not cheering for anyone.

The Kiwis had a barbecue and got drunk, but they do that most nights.

The Koreans had a party that had nothing to do with the rugby. I felt like the only person in Suva shouting for England.

AUSTRALIA

EXPAT: Neal Brewster.

OCCUPATION: Mining company analyst.

VENUE: Friend's barbecue, Perth, 5pm.

How was it for you?

It's always fraught supporting England in any sport, but as an Englishman who's just emigrated here, it was even more nervy. The press around here are especially parochial and had portrayed Jonny Wilkinson as a mummy's boy who phones home every day. Ha!

In the end it was poetic. Every Brit here has mortgaged themselves to the hilt making bets with work colleagues. It's payback time.

SCOTLAND

EXPAT: Peter Robertson.

OCCUPATION: Assistant pub manager.

VENUE: Three Sisters pub, Edinburgh.

How was it for you?

As a rugby player myself, I was supporting the England side because they are the better team. What did grate was how many times the commentators mentioned the 1966 World Cup game.

I am dreading hearing about this for years to come. We have not stopped hearing about 1966, after all.

- INDEPENDENT