How did Sweet Caroline become a favourite among England football fans?
Good times never felt so good as the country basks in the glory of England's win over Germany in their Euro 2020 last-16 encounter. With some inclined to believe they never would, England triumphed against Germany, as Sweet Caroline was roared by the 40,000 fan-strong crowd at Wembley and at viewing points across the country. The Neil Diamond classic is looking like it could top Football's Coming Home as the Three Lions' anthem of the tournament. Where it began  England supporters seem to have adopted the anthem from club football. Aston Villa fans latched onto the song in their Championship game against Stoke City in January 2019 and it's stuck ever since. Football journalist Lucas Pereira says the song was solidified as a Villa anthem when played during the Championship playoff semi-final against West Brom a few months later. Villa won on penalties and Neil Diamond's singalong classic was serenaded through the streets of Birmingham for hours after the final whistle blew. The song is also a classic at England cricket matches so may have been introduced to the football pitch via the cricket field. In the US, baseball giants The Red Sox play Sweet Caroline at every single game. Folklore has it that in 1997 a girl called Caroline was born in Boston. Her parents, avid Red Sox fans, were mates with the woman who was employed to pick the songs played at the baseball team's stadium. To mark the birth, she played Sweet Caroline - and it stuck. The song could have been given a boost this year by a 2020 campaign that saw a global singalong of the classic - with Neil Diamond fans reaching out from across the world. It's going strong  As spring became the summer, and spurred on by more than a year of Covid lockdown life, England fans have been belting out Sweet Caroline during the Euro 2020 tournament. England triumphed against Germany at Wembley on Tuesday to a chorus of "bah, bah, bah" as fans roared the chorus. At 7pm on Tuesday, just as the final whistle blew, Google searches for Sweet Caroline shot up in England. The chants continued to grow strong even after the final whistle went and captain Harry Kane's interview with ITV Sport was practically drowned out by the singing. Goalscorer Kane appeared emotional as he spoke post-match. Pausing to listen to the crowd, he said: "Yeah, it's special. I'm speechless, I don't know what to say. "Amazing day, amazing game." Manager Gareth Southgate paid credit to the fans too, and the song. In the post-match presser, he told journalists the fans in Wembley "were incredible". "I mean I've been here with a full house and not heard it anywhere near the levels that the crowd found today." The boss continued: "They were behind every challenge, they were behind every time we pressed the ball, they were behind every run we had, and the energy was incredible in the stadium." "So to be able to send them home feeling as they do tonight, to hear them at the end." That's a belter really."