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World Cup Survey
Football or Family? World Cup Wins for 1 in 5 Men
• 1 in 5 men say they would be happier if England win the World Cup than with a two-week holiday with their own family
• 1 in 6 men would actually sacrifice their upcoming family holiday for England to win the World Cup
• Women are showing their support for football with 1 in 10 willing to sacrifice their family holiday for an England win
• The South of England – South East, South West and London – is the most football focused region in the UK with over 20% saying they would be happier with an England win than a two-week family holiday
• However, the North of England – North West and North East – is the region most likely to actually sacrifice their upcoming holiday to secure an England win (19%) – compared to 14% in the South
• 100% of Scots stated a family holiday would make them happier than English World Cup victory – and no one was willing to sacrifice their holiday
13 June 2006 – A new survey by leading online car hire company Carrentals.co.uk has revealed that 1 in 5 men would be happier if England won the World Cup than if they had a two week holiday with their own family.
The survey also revealed that 1 in 6 men and 1 in 10 women would actually sacrifice their upcoming family holiday in exchange for an England victory.
Richard Game, Marketing Director of Carrentals.co.uk, said: "Given the choice between a family holiday and England winning the World Cup, for many people there seems to be no comparison – football is coming out on top. This World Cup seems to have got more people than ever feeling passionate about the England team, with the survey demonstrating just how much it means to many people and how much they are willing to give up, particularly those willing to sacrifice the family holiday which traditionally is one of the highlights of the year."
The strongest preference for football over family comes from southern England, with over 1 in 5 men in the South East, South West and London stating that winning the World Cup would make them happier than holidaying with their own family.
But when it comes to actually sacrificing the upcoming family holiday for a World Cup win it's the North of England – North West and North East – that is most passionate, with 19% saying they would sacrifice their upcoming holiday for an England victory, compared to 14% in the South of England.
The results show that 100% of those in the North of England who said an England victory would make them happier would sacrifice their upcoming holiday to secure a win, compared to 61% in the South.
Scottish respondents showed their lack of support for England with 100% stating a two-week family holiday would make them happier than England winning the World Cup, and no one willing to sacrifice their family holiday for England success.
Game added: "The results of the survey have surprised us. Whether it's due to the importance placed on this World Cup or the stress that can be associated with a summer holiday, the number who put football over family is higher than we expected. We're currently speaking to our customers about summer holiday stresses for our Family Active summer campaign, so we hope to find out more about the choices being made."
Over 300 people were questioned for the survey as part of the Carrentals.co.uk World Cup campaign, which also offers the chance to win an England shirt signed by many of the team including Beckham, Rooney and Owen, and one of six framed replica 1966 World Cup programmes with the facsimile signature of Geoff Hurst.
Full details of the Carrentals.co.uk World Cup campaign can be found at