A song celebrating the historic football match between British and German troops in the "No Man's Land" of World War One has been chosen as England's official anthem for the Euro 2004 soccer tournament.
"Altogethernow" by The Farm was inspired by the unofficial armistice on the Western Front on Christmas Day 1914, when British and German soldiers emerged from the trenches for a kick about.
"It's a fantastic honour to have our song chosen to be the official England anthem," singer-songwriter Peter Hooton told the Football Association's (FA) web site on Friday (www.thefa.com).
The song, which became an Indy anthem when it was released in 1990, has been remixed by BBC Radio 1's DJ Spoony.
"The greatest game in the world had momentarily united the soldiers," said Hooton. "I wanted to capture the spirit of that day in the lyrics."
The new remix features the St Francis Xavier Boys' Choir, Liverpool, who recently performed at the 15th anniversary of the Hillsborough tragedy, in which 95 fans were crushed or trampled to death during an FA Cup semifinal.
The FA has chosen the slogan "Altogethernow" to headline an anti-hooliganism drive during the Euro tournament.
"The fact that the song supports our initiative to promote positive behaviour both in England and Portugal during Euro 2004 is an added bonus," said FA Commercial Director Jonathan Hill.
England fans caused mayhem in Brussels and Charleroi during the 2000 championship and the national team has been warned it could be thrown out of the 2004 tournament if fans misbehave.
