On this day in 1938, England impressively beat Germany 6-3 at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium. But the match is perhaps best remembered for an entirely different reason.
With 110,000 fans present inside the stadium, the England players were told by a Football Association official to do the infamous ‘Nazi salute’ during the playing of the German national anthem.
“The dressing room erupted. There was bedlam. All the England players were livid and totally opposed to this, myself included,” said Stanley Matthews.
“Everyone was shouting at once. Eddie Hapgood, normally a respected and devoted captain, wagged his finger at the official and told him what he could do with his Nazi salute, which involved putting it where the sun doesn’t shine.