England failed to beat Hungary for the first time in 60 years on Saturday. The Nations League match, which could almost only be visited by children due to a UEFA penalty, ended in a 1-0 victory for the home country in Budapest.
Despite the punishment imposed by the Hungarian federation for racism, the Puskás Arena was well filled. By a special rule, children accompanied by an adult were invited to attend the competition for free. Remarkably enough, they did make themselves heard with booing when the English knelt as a statement against racism.
The more than 30,000 children saw Dominik Szoboszlai score the only goal of the game halfway through the second half. The RB Leipzig midfielder was allowed to moor from eleven meters after referee Artur Soares Dias whistled for a minor foul by substitute Reece James.
England looked uninspired in the hunt for the equalizer, so Hungary simply stayed on their feet. It marked the end of an impressive run of 22 games without defeat for the team of national coach Gareth Southgate (excluding duels that were decided with a penalty series).
Hungary’s last win over England dates back to 1962, when Hungary won 2-1 at the 1962 World Cup. Since then, England have been unbeaten in fifteen encounters against the Hungarians, who last year crowned themselves as group winners in division B and promoted to division A.
England and Hungary are placed in group 3 of Division A with Italy and Germany. Those two countries will compete against each other on Saturday evening. The game in Bologna starts at 8.45 PM.
The Nations League match between Italy and Germany can be followed in our live blog.