How boring would sports be without hubris and schadenfreude? In advance of Friday’s match with England, Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet gazed deep into its crystal ball and predicted England’s riotous tabloids, including the Sun, the Daily Mirror, and the Daily Mail, running rampant in the wake of an England loss, complete with mocked-up front pages. They’re photoshop masterpieces, highlighted by the headlines “Smorgas-Bored to Death,” and “Sven-Goran: Haha ha ha ha.”
Now, the aforementioned tabloids may indeed get the chance to do their savage best should England fail to make the quarter-finals after their match against Ukraine on Tuesday. But before then, England supporters should take their time revelling in England’s epic 3-2 comeback victory and Danny Welbeck’s sumptuous ‘Heel of God” goal” by chortling heartily at Aftonbladet’s hubris and general Swedish misfortune.
For your viewing pleasure, here are several of Saturday’s Swedish front pages. Truly, pictures are worth a tusen ord, as Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s hunched figure, Olof Mellberg’s slumped shoulders, and Manager Erik Hamren’s rage tell the tale. But, the schadenfreude would be incomplete without a few translations of the headlines:
From the Dagens Nyheter; “It may still be three points (when they finish against France), but this is still a fiasco”
From the Expressen: “Hamren refuses to recognize tactical miss”
From the Kvalls Posten: “Stars fly from the blue and yellow”
From the Aftonbladet: “Zlatan’s Rage”
From the Helsingborgs Dagblad: “Right now you just want to scream, Hamren, what the hell were you thinking?”
