The Benidorm dilemma: Going with Spain or England in the EURO final?

Just over 300,000 Britons reside in Spain throughout the year, plus many more come to spend their holidays, making it, according to Turespaña, their favorite holiday destination in the world. With the Euro 2024 final around the corner, many English fans residing in Spain will have to defend their colors in a foreign territory. 'La Furia Roja' or the 'Three Lions', who will be the last man standing?

The city of Alicante - a traditional destination for thousands of English tourists every year - expects the presence of both 'Roja' and 'Three Lions' fans in the streets.

This is why the City Council has already announced that a special security reinforcement operation has been designed so that everything runs normally on the day of the grand final without any hiccups.

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Spanish authorities will keep strict surveillance and hope both fan zones can coexist without violence. Spanish police have doubled down their efforts around the city of Benidorm, where large groups of English fans are expected to watch the final.

The designated area for the English fans will host a giant screen to broadcast the final, providing a safe space for fans.

L'Aigüera Park will be prepared to host a large party for 4,000 people!

The specific police device destined for the event will be made up of 10 patrols from the Benidorm Local Police and support troops from the National Police from the UIP and UPR groups, special intervention units, in addition to having aerial surveillance.

Traffic will be cut off near the English fan zones, and the sale of drinks will be limited to plastic glasses after 6:00 pm.

According to INE data for 2023, Benidorm has a total of 3,874 registered British citizens, which represents 6% of the population, which amounts to 69,738 inhabitants. And to this is added that 42.6% of the tourists it receives come from the United Kingdom, above the 42.1% of Spaniards who spend their summers there.

"It is coming home," has been the main theme ahead of the final this Sunday. Many British fans have eagerly awaited a chance to redeem their horrific 2020 final against Italy. Moral is high and many think Southgate could pull off a major upset.

While Benidorm might be one of the most visited destinations by British tourists, it won't be the only city in the Mediterranean that will be split down the middle on Sunday. There are large British communities around Valencia, Murcia, and Andalucia.

Curiously, Benidorm is not the city with the highest percentage of British population but is surpassed by its neighbor Orihuela, also in the province of Alicante, where 12% of registered residents come from the United Kingdom.

Next come Mijas (Málaga) with 9.9%, Calvià (Mallorca) with 7.9%, Fuengirola (Málaga) with 6.7%, Torrevieja (Alicante) and Estepona (Málaga), both with 5.7%, Benidorm (Alicante) and Benalmádena (Málaga) with 4.9%, Arona (Santa Cruz de Tenerife) with 4.8%, and Marbella (Málaga) with 3.2%.

There are municipalities that also attract a huge number of tourists from the United Kingdom, like the municipalities of Almeria, Partaloa (1,055 inhabitants), with more than 50% British, and Los Gallardos (2,800 inhabitants), where they almost dominate.

As for tourism, the United Kingdom will have a presence in all these municipalities, the favorites being Benidorm, Magaluf or Torremolinos, as well as in numerous corners of the islands (Balearic and Canary Islands).

On Sunday, July 14, the Euro 2024 final will be felt from the Berlin Olympic Stadium to the Spanish Mediterranean. A football spectacle in the making, may the best team win!

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