Sport

BOX launch football lookalike competition where you can win free pints and bar tabs during the Euros

So ready for everyone to dye their hair like Gazza again.

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 15th June 2024

BOX on Deansgate has launched a brand new lookalike competition where football fans can win free pints and bar tabs during the Euros this summer.

The popular chain of sports bars has multiple locations all over the country and is sure to be packed through Euro 2024. It also turns out the brand is hoping to fill its various venues with some of the best football lookalikes possible as part of a fun new giveaway.

Pretty much promising exactly what it says on the tin, the new competition will see those fortunate enough to bear a resemblance to famous footballers be handed free pints throughout the tournament. It really is as simple as that.

There’s even the chance for the most impressive footballing doppelgänger to win a table of six plus a whopping £250 at your BOX site of choice for the Euro 2024 final on Sunday, 14 July. Say no more, we’re about to get a Phil Foden trim like yesterday.

Entry terms are simple: to join you simply need to submit a photo of yourself, a friend or a family member who you believe looks similar to a footballing star.

ADVERTISEMENT

The easiest way to take part is to tag @theboxbaruk in your Instagram story with your lookalike image using the hashtag #BOXDOPPLEGANGER, then send a direct message containing your entry.

Probably the best part about all of this is that you get a free pint just for taking part – and no, we’re not joking. Anywhere offering free pints whilst the footy’s on get a thumbs up from us. May the best football lookalike win!

ADVERTISEMENT

The fun doesn’t stop there though: a weekly Euros-themed quiz every Wednesday at BOX Deansgate to test fans’ knowledge; their famous ‘Bandeoke’ is on every Thursday, as well as live bands and DJs on Fridays and Saturdays to guarantee the party continues long after full-time.

Football fans can also treat themselves to a number of European-inspired delights with a limited-edition Euro 2024 food and drink menu, featuring Currywurst Loaded Fries, Bavarian Burgers and the ‘Olympian’ pizza. Plus, you can get two-pint beer steins, mini-kegs and a host of other footy-themed drinks.

BOX’s football lookalike competition is one of many reasons it’s a great place to watch the Euros. (Credit: Supplied)

Read more:

As always with these things, full T&Cs apply (i.e. only one entry per person) but the whole thing is pretty straightforward and you can find out more information on their website.

ADVERTISEMENT

Laura Lewis, Marketing Director at ARC Inspirations, commented: “We’re excited for EURO 2024 to kick off a huge summer of sport at BOX. This competition is the perfect start, and we can’t wait to see all the entrants and crown the overall winner. We’re looking forward to welcoming fans at our venues and hopefully celebrating a successful summer for the England team!”

“The football is just the tip of the iceberg. We will be showing all the major sporting events, like the Cricket T20 World Cup, Wimbledon, and the Olympics. We can’t wait to see our venues filled with fans having a great time and watching their favourite sports. Not only is BOX the ultimate bar to watch, it’s also the ultimate venue to play and party this summer.”

BOX quickly found its way onto our list of where to watch the Euros in Manchester city centre and to find out what other venues we think are among the best places to witness the football finally come home (you best believe it is), look no further:

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — BOX (supplied)

Sport

Keely Hodgkinson is setting up her own running event next year as she prepares for a world record attempt

Danny Jones Danny Jones Keely Klassic race Keely Hodgkinson world record attempt race 2025

Greater Manchester’s middle-distance running maverick, Keely Hodgkinson, has just been voted BBC Sports Personality of the Year and we couldn’t be prouder, but she’s already eyeing up her next accolade: the 800m world record – and she’s hoping to do it at her own brand-new running event.

The Atherton-born athlete was one of Team GB’s shining lights at Paris 2024, storming ahead of the pack to win her first Olympic gold medal in just her second summer games but it’s been an unbelievable calendar year for her as a whole.

She already held the British women’s record before going on to not just defend her title but actually better her time at the European Athletics Championships back in June, with only five people in history having ever run it faster than her.

However, the Tyldesley-schooled track star believes she isn’t too far away from achieving another dream and one which would forever cement her amongst the sporting greats. She’s even creating the perfect opportunity for herself early in the new year.

Hodgkinson is launching an all-new running event of her own called the ‘Keely Klassic’, which is set to take place in Birmingham and will effectively serve as her first real attempt at smashing the 800m record.

Being registered as an official Bronze meeting on the World Athletics Indoor Tour, the day of racing will feature around nine heats involving top athletes, live music and entertainment, as well as celebrity appearances and more.

With the BBC themselves already in talks to broadcast the very first edition of what her teams hopes will be an annual event, it is rumoured to be an hour-long televised show and the headliner will be Keely’s attempt at breaking a 800m record – or two…

As well as aiming to smash Jolanda Ceplak’s all-time best (1:55.82) set on 15 Februrary 2002 – which just so happens to be the day Keely was born and when the Klassic will be taking place – she’s also going to try and surpass the outdoor record of 1:53.28 set by Czech runner Jarmila Kratochvilova back in 1983.

Speaking to the BBC after lifting the 2024 Sports Personality Award, the 22-year-old runner and Olympian said: “I’m pretty close [to the world record], I would like to think. I have seen this year what my body is capable of and I’m excited to push on.

“That world record is something I will always have in the back of my head. But I have so many years to get stronger so I’m looking forward to seeing what happens.”

She also said she has no fear in making her goals public as it only serves as motivation to push for them under the public eye, having done exactly the same in the lead-up to her first Olympics back in Tokyo.

Read more:

The Wigan hero made it clear that the 800m world record was what she wanted next almost immediately after winning gold in Paris back in the summer and it sounds like her preparation and training has now got her into what sounds like touching distance.

Hodgkinson made a point of thanking her coach Trevor Painter on the stage after he name was revealed too, stating, “I wouldn’t be where I am without his guidance that I’ve had since I was 17.”

She only doubled down on her gratitude after the fact as well, adding: “I trust in Trevor and Jenny [Meadows] a lot. I know what shape I’m in before I step on the start line.

“[A world record break] all depends if it comes together and that can depend on many things in athletics”, she insists, but it’s clear that if she does manage to go and smash another feat – be that the indoor/outdoor record in 2025 or another time in the near future – their wisdom will no doubt play a part.

Roll on the Keely Klassic.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Erik van Leeuwen (via Wikimedia Commons)/BBC (screenshot via YouTube)

Sport

Is Marcus Rashford really gearing up to leave Manchester United in January?

Danny Jones Danny Jones Is Marcus Rashford leaving Manchester United?

Marcus Rashford has been one of the best homegrown talents at Manchester United in recent years and a fan favourite ever since he broke onto the scene back in 2016, but things haven’t been going so smoothly of late and it now looks like he could be leaving the club after nearly two decades.

Despite hitting the heights of 30 goals during the 2022/23 campaign, Rashford‘s output over the past couple of seasons has dipped and he has been known as more of a ‘purple-patch’ player throughout most of his time as a senior player at Old Trafford.

There is nothing United fans want more than to see the Wythenshawe winger rediscover his form and go on another one of those streaks as a fresh chapter begins under the new head coach, Rúben Amorim, but it looks as though Rashford could be gearing up to call it a day in the iconic red shirt.

Now 27 years old and entering what would be traditionally seen as his peak for most footballers, the number 10 told journalist Henry Winter that he is “ready for a new challenge”, which could very well signal a move away from Man United in the upcoming transfer window.

Having spent a day off with the veteran sports writer this week, the pair visited his old primary school Button Lane to hand out hundreds of Christmas presents, watching kids play on the football pitch he helped fund and once again tackle the issue of food poverty in Greater Manchester and beyond.

As Winter goes on to explain in his lengthy post on X, Rashford woke up to headlines speculating that his boyhood club have now put him “up for sale” and are reportedly willing to listen to offers in January.

Although the Manc footballer didn’t categorically outline a desire to leave, nor to stay necessarily, he did say that he feels “next steps” are due but that “when I leave it’s going to be no hard feelings. You’re not going to have any negative comments from me about Manchester United. That’s me as a person.

“If I know that a situation is already bad I’m not going to make it worse”, he continued. “I’ve seen how other players have left in the past and I don’t want to be that person. When I leave I’ll make a statement and it will be from me”, adding that he’ll always be a Red, “100%”.

So how likely is it that Rashford will leave the club in January? Well, being left out of the Manchester derby – a decision he made no bones about being disappointed over – clearly signals that Amorim wasn’t totally happy with his overall preparation but the Portuguese manager did respond in a shrewd manner:

Agreeing with the United star, who at one time was considered one of England’s hottest prospects and is still unplayable at times when operating at his very best, the 39-year-old was mindful not to respond defensively to his comments but turn them into what he hopes will be shared motivation.

It’s also worth noting that Rashford wasn’t the only one dropped from the derby-winning team: Alejandro Garnacho, undoubtedly one of the club’s most promising talents who already delivers game-changing performances as his teammate has done so many times, was also left out for one reason or another.

Amorim reiterated that each week can be a clean slate and that he intends to observe everything from how players train and eat to how they dress and carry themselves around Carrington, especially when it comes to “engaging with the [rest of the] squad”, so this seemingly wasn’t an effort target the two.

The 39-year-old also assured that his decision wasn’t a disciplinary issue in any way, as Rashford hasn’t been left out of matchday squads or at the very least benched by former boss, Erik ten Hag, for turning up late to a team meeting and a rogue night-out in Belfast.

All that being said, while it appears there is no personal issue with Rashford, another element that will no doubt factor into whether he decides to leave United will be his increasingly fractious relationship with sections of the fan base, having shared more “despicable” direct messages with Winter too.

‘Enough is enough’: Marcus Rashford calls out fans for ‘months’ of abuse
Rashford has called out abusive supporters in the past and perhaps the endless online vitriol could result in him leaving United.

Read more:

Lastly, it’s also important to consider whether or not he is the right fit for Amorim’s unwavering 3-4-3 system that he is starting to implement on the current collection players.

Rashford has pace, skill, finishing ability and a great passing range, but his best position has always been cutting in off the flanks and unless he can nail down that spot as the left-sided number 10 (a position where there is already plenty of competition), the only other option is as a striker or a left wing-back.

Now, with lots of other attacking and creative midfielders in contention for those players sat just behind and on either side of the number nine, and two big-money forwards rotating up front, it will likely be a scrap every week to get in that starting XI.

Moreover, with Amad Diallo already showcasing exactly the kind of energy levels and persistent pressing that Amorim wants from his two 10s and his wing-backs, in particular – not to mention reaping the rewards for his efforts against Man City and in previous matches – it’s might be a case of can/will Rashford match that amount of running when asked.

Perhaps the better question is, do you think it’s time for Rashford to take on that new challenge away from Manchester United and do you expect to see him leaving in the January transfer window?

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — soccer.ru (via Wikimedia Commons)

More Sport

Tyson Fury hasn't spoke to his wife Paris for three months preparing for Usyk 2 rematch

Sport

Tyson Fury says he hasn’t spoken to his wife in ‘three months’ whilst preparing for Usyk rematch

Manchester City has confirmed one of its supporters has died after a medical incident at the derby match. Credit: The Manc Group

News

A Manchester City fan has died after a medical incident at Manchester derby

Pep Guardiola says he is not good enough after Manchester derby loss

Sport

‘I am not good enough’: Pep Guardiola makes bold claim after Manchester derby defeat

Audio

Clint Boon takes us around Manchester's iconic Deaf Institute

Eats

We go meatballs deep with Mira's traditional Neapolitan sandwiches