Forget the Hooligans, Germany Battles the Real English Mob
June 29, 2006
The Germans can't be blamed for not being ready. Everything that could be done was done. Police forces from both sides of the channel had been liaising for months on the best strategies to employ to minimize the damage.
However, while British and German security forces were preparing for the possible influx of English soccer hooligans, no one was prepared for the havoc that the wives and girlfriends (WAGs) of the England players would wreak.
Imagine, if you dare, a typical night out in a large English city. Even for those who have never experienced one, it's not hard to visualize the scene. Stories of boozy evenings in England are as much tabloid fodder in the international press as they are in the red tops back home.
The binge drinking normally ends with sweaty lads in designer shirts bawling or brawling as the girls battle to keep their dignity covered by micro-minis while simultaneously knocking back alcopops and trying to stay upright.
Now substitute Manchester on a Friday night with Baden-Baden on every night of the week since the England team took up residence there. Also, substitute micro-minis for this year's must-have hotpants and alcopops for Moet & Chandon. Welcome to the sideshow which is the WAGs on tour.
WAGs turn spa town into a never-ending hen night
More used to retired German millionaires shuffling into the spas that it is famous for, the population of Baden-Baden has been knocked sideways by the arrival of the women and their designer handbags and fake tans.
They are staying at the 1450 euro ($1821) a night Brenner's Park Hotel and the paparazzi with their long lenses have followed them.
Leading the pack is Victoria "Posh Spice" Beckham. At 32, Victoria is the doyen of footballers' wives having been there and done that.
While her appearance in skimpy shorts and massive sunglasses sparked debate about whether she is too thin, she has otherwise maintained a low profile, looking after her three children and cheering on husband David.
The other WAGs have been more conspicuous, competing in the fashion stakes while seeing who can drink and spend the most.
Normally quiet bars turned into Wild West saloons
"They swilled drink, smashed glasses, roared raucous chants and belted out bawdy sing-songs," yelled the British tabloid Daily Mirror after some were spotted in one of the few late-night bars here where most of the other customers were reporters.
It said they rang up a bill of thousands of pounds after downing bottles of Moet champagne followed by glasses of vodka and Red Bull and shots of Sambucca.
After drunkenly singing songs in honor of England, things then turned partisan when the WAGs of the Liverpool contingent started singing offensive songs about Chelsea and Manchester United.
While the downtime is becoming notorious, the shopping sprees, meanwhile, have become legendary.
Mass market German daily Bild said six of the WAGs, including Posh and coach Sven-Goran Eriksson's girlfriend Nancy DellOlio, spent 80,000 euros in one hour in the town's luxury boutiques.
It said the women blew 4,395 euros in 10 minutes alone on shoes and T-shirts, with the rest going on creations by Dolce and Gabbana, Prada and Versace.
"I hope England stays in the competition for a while," delighted boutique owner Monika Scholz was quoted as saying. However, that opinion is not shared by many of the locals who have become increasingly annoyed with the drunken antics of the WAGs. Many have said they can't wait for England to get knocked out so they can all go home.
Divisions over behavior
And as the weeks have passed -- during which Baden-Baden has become known as Boring-Boring -- tensions have grown and splits in the ranks have reportedly occurred within the group, with some tiring of the others' antics and attitudes.
Ashley Cole's pop star fiancée Cheryl Tweedy has become close to Posh and DellOlio, and Wayne Rooney's girlfriend Coleen McLoughlin, who brought her own tanning consultant with her, has also sided with them.
"Victoria's been in this game for years. She's got decorum whereas some of the others couldn't even spell the word," the Mirror quoted an "insider" as saying.
Such has been the sideshow that Britain's "high-brow" media has also waded in, with the Sunday Times citing a survey by Carma, an international media analysis company, on which WAG has got the most press coverage. The winner so far is Tweedy, a singer with the group Girls Aloud.
Next comes Posh, followed by Carly Zucker, the fitness instructor girlfriend of Joe Cole. Following her is Melanie Slade, the student girlfriend of Theo Walcott, England's teenage striker who has yet to get a game. She beat off McLoughlin, and Abigail Clancy, the squeeze of Peter Crouch.
Next up was Elen Rives, the partner of Frank Lampard who was prevented from boarding her flight to Germany after throwing a tantrum when told she could not take six items of hand luggage with her.
And then there are the MADs, or mums and dads of the players, who are also here in force.
While their behavior has been far more restrained, Neville Neville (no, really), the father of defender Gary, left his mark when he was pictured dancing on a couch at a club with the WAGs holding a replica World Cup.