Starmer stepped in to stop Fifa moving England kick-off

Keir Starmer intervened to prevent Fifa bringing forward kick-off at the Azteca amid concerns the change could give Mexico an unfair advantage over England.

The UK government stepped in through diplomatic channels to oppose moving the match from 1am to 7pm BST because it would mean England had less time to adapt to the altitude, it is understood.

Starmer directed the intervention after being alerted to the potential problem by the FA, which is understood to have contacted Downing Street before the game, as first reported by The Sun.

England overcame hostility, altitude and Jarell Quansah’s red card to edge a 3-2 blockbuster against World Cup co-hosts Mexico on Monday morning UK time and set up a quarter-final clash with Norway.

The match was due to kick-off at 1am UK time (6pm local time), but with the threat of lightning in the area, the stadium activated its thunderstorm protocol and the game instead started at 2am UK time (7pm local time).

Outgoing prime minister Starmer already intervened last week with emergency legislation to allow pubs to stay open late for the round-of-16 match.

“Football might be coming home but we’re making sure fans don’t have to,” he said.

A Tory source said on Monday: “Where’s this Keir Starmer been the whole time?”

Pubs reaped the dividend of England’s victory with sales increasing by 67 per cent as fans found the perfect tonic for their nerves before celebrating the team’s progress to the quarter-finals, figures from Heineken UK suggest.

Food sales rose 81 per cent, cider by 127 per cent and lager by 76 per cent in Heineken UK’s managed-operator pubs, with the busiest trading period around kick-off at 2am, with a 4,782 per cent year-on-year increase in total sales.

About two thirds of the 2,400 pubs Heineken UK manages are estimated to have stayed open for the round-of-16 clash.

The hospitality sector as a whole received a boost from the early hours kick-off, with footfall on high streets across the UK up by nearly 150 per cent between midnight and 6am compared with the same period last year, according to MRI Software.