'Three Lions' song lyrics and 'Football's Coming Home' meaning explained

'It's Coming Home' has become a slogan and call to arms for England fans. The line was born over 20 years ago and has somehow managed to endure the ravages of numerous failed campaigns to come forth once more and give hope to a new generation of English football supporters.

The song from which it is derived is called 'Three Lions', which was resurrected for World Cup 2018 before reappearing at Euro 2020, and continues to be sung with gusto by England fans across the world.

We take a look at the terrace anthem, who wrote it, and what it all means.

When was 'Three Lions' released?

The original 'Three Lions' single was released in May 1996 ahead of that summer's European Championship - Euro 96 - which was being held in England.

It went straight to number one on the UK Singles Chart and enjoyed two weeks at the summit during the course of the tournament.

The single was the lead track on the official Euro '96 album 'The Beautiful Game', which also featured songs from Jamiroquai, Massive Attack, and Blur, as well as a remixed version of New Order's classic 'World In Motion', which was the official England song for the 1990 World Cup.

An updated version of the song - which was called 'Three Lions '98' was subsequently released in June 1998 in the run-up to the 1998 World Cup.

Like its predecessor, the 1998 version was an instant hit, climbing to the top of the charts, where it remained for three weeks.

What does 'It's Coming Home' mean?

The term 'It's Coming Home' or 'Football's Coming Home' is a reference to the idea that football glory is returning to the country where football is often said to have been 'invented'.

'Three Lions' and each of its subsequent versions are imbued with a defiant sense of optimism against the painful litany of England's past failings at major tournaments. 

The song begins with the gradual crescendo of the line, 'It's coming home', which serves as a sort of mantra, as if to ward off and drown out the critical voices of pundits decrying the deficiencies of the English team.

The idea of football "coming home" had gained popularity after England won the right to host the European Championship in 1996, with the tournament's tag line being 'Football Comes Home'. This was a reference to the fact that the game we now know as association football was first codified in England. 

In another sense, the line has since come to reflect a desire for a second World Cup triumph, with fans willing the team on to bring the trophy home for the first time since 1966.

Why Three Lions?

The lyric 'three lions on a shirt', which inspired the name of the single, is a reference to the badge that features on England shirts.

The badge, which features three lions guardant passant (walking with head facing the viewer), is a version of the coat of arms of England. 

It's Coming Home Memes

A curious outworking of the 'It's Coming Home' craze that gripped England fans ahead of Russia 2018 was the preponderance of memes and viral videos that appeared on social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook.

The opening refrain of the Three Lions song was paired with scenes from a host of famous films and television shows.

Memes and videos reappeared during Euro 2020.

The hashtag #ItsComingHome on Twitter became a treasure trove of mash-ups, with everything from The Shawshank Redemption and Shrek to The Simpsons and Only Fools and Horses getting the meme treatment.

How many versions of 'Three Lions' are there?

Three definitive versions of 'Three Lions' have been recorded over the years.

As well as the aforementioned 1996 and updated 1998 version, a new song was recorded ahead of the 2010 World Cup, with Baddiel, Skinner and Broudie forming 'The Squad' with Robbie Williams and Russell Brand.

Interestingly, supporters of Germany - England's long-time rivals - have mockingly appropriated the song for themselves after Jurgen Klinsmann led a chorus of the song on Germany's homecoming following their Euro '96 triumph. One of the song's writers, Baddiel, has addressed the fact in the past.

"People ask how it makes me feel, to hear the Germans sing it," he wrote in the Guardian during the 2014 World Cup. "Well, there's a part of me, to be honest, that's glad someone is still singing it on the terraces. England fans seem to have stopped." 

He'll be even happier now that England fans appear to have reclaimed the era-defining stadium anthem.

What do the 'Three Lions' lyrics mean?

The songs are littered with references to England's past glories and failures, with certain moments highlighted as a reminder of the team's capabilities and rebuttal to those critics who suggest that England are not good enough to win the World Cup.

"We thought, OK, let's write a song, not like all the other 'we're going to win' songs that had tracked England's failure to win the World Cup for many years," Baddiel said in an interview with BBC Radio 2 . 

"Let's write a song about the real experience of being a fan of the England football team' - which is, we're probably not going to win, or at least lots of people are saying we're not and we're not very good. But somewhere within us there is a kind of irrational, magical hope that we might anyway. 

"And that's the real condition, it felt to us, of being an England fan and that's what we tried to embody in the lyrics. I think that spirit of defiance against the experience of punching through 'we know we can play' - spoke to England fans. We didn't know it spoke to England fans when we wrote it, but it did."

Source: Goal.com