There were a few fans in England shirts dotted around the O2 Arena in east London, torn between the concert by Las Vegas rock band The Killers and the drama of a European Championship semi-final.
“How’s England doing?” asked frontman Brandon Flowers with the score still 1-1, noticing the nervous checking of phones in the crowd. “Well, hopefully we can relieve some of your anxiety,” he continued. And then it came.
Ollie Watkins’ 90th-minute goal to give England a late 2-1 lead over the Netherlands set off a chain reaction of celebrations as the news filtered through the crowd, juxtaposed against the backdrop of a song called A Dustland Fairytale, which Flowers dedicated to his mother Jean, who he lost to cancer in 2010.
Moments later, the big screen broadcasted a stream of the game’s five minutes of added time, and then an electrifying energy transformed the room.
“They’ve got a goal that looks like giving them a place in a European Championship final,” said ITV commentator Sam Matterface in the final seconds. “That’s exactly what it’s given them!” he screamed moments later as the final whistle blew. But at the O2, his words were already being drowned out.
The celebrations were raucous. Bursts of red-and-white confetti flowed into the standing section as the opening and familiar riff of Mr Brightside began to play. The crowd, already jubilant, fully exploded into life. The band tapped into the mood seamlessly. Their biggest hit song was screamed back at them in euphoria by the thousands in attendance.
Drummer Ronnie Vannucci Jr had proudly re-emerged wearing an England shirt and Flowers, who had been captivated by the game’s last couple of minutes, said it was a moment the band would never forget.
Tonight we played for England 🏴! pic.twitter.com/bqvSas14Z5
— The Killers (@thekillers) July 10, 2024
“It was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” Emily Richardson, a 33-year-old super fan from Arizona, says. “I went to all of The Killers’ shows (at The O2). Wednesday night was five of six. And that was the top moment by far.
“Before they played A Dustland Fairytale, he (Flowers) was saying home isn’t just a place, it can also be a person and how home was always his mom,” Richardson recalls. “It was this really beautiful moment where everyone in the arena had torches on their phones out and while that song was playing England scored their second goal.
“You could see ripples of excitement in the audience as people were reacting to the score. As soon as they finished that song, they put the match on the big screen and we watched the last couple of minutes play out. And then it was chaotic excitement and pandemonium when they won and Mr Brightside started playing. It was utter joy.”
Richardson, who admits she is not a massive football fan, says that didn’t matter. The moment took hold of the entire crowd.
“Everyone was singing with each other and dancing around. It felt like one big collective,” she says. “The Killers are really good at knowing their audience and tapping into those cultural moments. It felt like the decision to play Mr Brightside and move the setlist around to play it right after England won was a spur of the moment thing. It usually bookends the show, but it was played based on the mood of the crowd and the fact England were about to win.
“I don’t think anything can really compare to it. It felt like one of those core memories. Something you’ll never forget.”
England’s players celebrate against the Netherlands on Wednesday evening (Eddie Keogh/Getty Images)
For Rhian Gartland and her boyfriend Alex, the game suddenly appearing on the big screen proved helpful.
“We had no signal in the O2, so we didn’t really know what was going on in the game,” says the 31-year-old England fan. “Then it came up and we were all just waiting for the final whistle. When it came, the red-and-white streamers went off and they went straight into Mr Brightside – it was euphoric.
“Brandon Flowers kept mentioning ‘This one’s for England, congratulations guys!’. I don’t even know how much he cares about football, but he was fully on board with it. We were going in and thinking it’s an American band, they aren’t going to care — but they totally cared.
“I don’t even know how they did it. How did they time it to perfection? How did they live-stream on those massive screens in the O2? It was seamless. The feeling in there was just riding high for the rest of the set. Everybody was elated. Everybody was on their feet.”
Lighting and production designer Steven Douglas was one of those working to make the magic happen. “Well done to the crew for the quick pivot on setlist, video, audio and confetti to make a great moment,” he said in a post on X.
Gartland thinks Mr Brightside will now become an anthem for England fans ahead of this Sunday’s final against Spain in Berlin and beyond.
Tom Wells, who was seeing the band for a 14th time, agrees. He captured the moment on camera and posted it to X, where it has now been viewed almost three million times.
Well @thekillers just did the coolest thing ever on stage as England won the semi final…#ENGNED #ItsComingHome pic.twitter.com/96mw7l0Kum
— Tom Wells (@TomWellsLSF) July 10, 2024
“Everyone was replying to my tweet saying you might as well call this the national anthem of England now,” the 30-year-old from Boreham Wood says. “It’s crazy as well because Mr Brightside has never actually been No 1. So, maybe after this at the weekend if England win, someone might start a campaign to get it to No 1 at last.”
The iconic song was recognised by Guinness World Records earlier this month. As of July 4, when The Killers opened their run of London tour dates, the track had spent 416 weeks in the United Kingdom’s music charts, which is the longest run for a song by a group.
Wells calls the decision to play it “a stroke of genius”.
According to Setlist.FM, the printed setlist on the night stated that Mr Brightside was originally intended to be the final song of the encore, but the band opted to bring it forward to coincide with the wild celebrations.
It is not just The Killers getting gripped by Euros fever either. Wells watched Kasabian in the band’s hometown of Leicester during England’s win over Switzerland last weekend.
“They didn’t put it on the screens, but the Kaiser Chiefs (the support act) stopped playing to let the crowd sing Three Lions after Trent (Alexander-Arnold) scored the winning penalty in the shootout. I feel like I might be a bit of a curse now,” Wells laughs. “I can’t watch the final, I need to find a gig to go to on Sunday.”
(Top photo: Formula 1/Getty Images)
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