A man who stuck a flare up his backside ahead of England's Euro 2020 final against Italy last Sunday has said it was the 'biggest day of his life' and refused to apologise for bribing stewards and another fan to get into Wembley Stadium for the match.
25-year-old Charlie Perry said that he has absolutely no regrets about his day, which included smashing 20 cans of Strongbow and sticking a load of 'powder' up his nose, according to The Sun.
Charlie, from Sunbury-on-Thames, said that breaking into the stadium was 'p*** easy' and added that he 'regrets nothing' about his decision to bribe people to get into the final without a ticket.
The day started at around 08:30am - just shy of 12 hours before kick-off - with heavy drinking, and Charlie says he 'banged a load' of 'powder' throughout the day.
The Chelsea fan said: "I'd been on the p*** since half eight in the morning and had had at least 20 cans of Strongbow.
"It was the biggest day of my life. There were no rules that day. All I know is that I loved it all. I was off my face and I loved every minute."
Perry claims that he's an experienced 'gibber' - someone who manages to get into a stadium with no ticket - and says he even got into the semi-final against Denmark in the same fashion.
He said: "Obviously I didn't have a ticket. I had gone in as a gibber before so I knew how to get into the stadium already."
Perry was initially stopped, but removed his jumper and £545 Louis Vuitton bucket hat and tried again.
That time, he was more successful, offering a steward a 'little backhander' at the Covid test and ticketing check area.
Then, he bribed another fan to let him in behind them at the turnstile to get into the ground itself.
He explained: "To get in you have to go round the back of someone who already has a ticket.
"I gave them £100, and went behind them. In total it cost me about £250."
Once inside, he took selfies in front of the pitch and continued on drinking.
Despite criticism - and widespread publicity of the flare photograph - he said he was just trying to cheer everyone up.
Perry said: "After 18 months of misery, I thought it would bring the England fans together.
"It was the biggest day in English football for 55 years.
"There were thousands of fans in Leicester Square, the atmosphere was amazing.
"Everyone was fooling around, there was a bit of a competition to do stuff so I just thought I'd put the flare up my bum. It was the biggest day of my life apart from Chelsea versus Man City in the Champions League."
He added: "The flare burnt for about ten seconds or so around the cheeks, I didn't feel a thing because I was highly intoxicated. No one dared me to do it.
"It was a very irresponsible thing to do."
When asked to apologise, he said: "Nah, no way. I'm not saying sorry."
Featured Image Credit: Elliott FranksTopics: SPORT, UK News, Football, Euro 2020, England, Alcohol, Drugs, Weird