On Saturday, the evening before England’s match against Italy at Wembley Stadium in London, Queen Elizabeth II delivered a letter of encouragement to England manager Gareth Southgate.

Elizabeth remembered presenting the World Cup to England in 1966 and witnessing the excitement.

The Queen was in attendance as England memorably defeated West Germany 4-2 in the 1966 World Cup final, and the class of 2021 has received the royal stamp of approval.

The note says, “Mr Gareth Southgate, OBE (Manager).

“Fifty-five years ago I was fortunate to present the World Cup to Bobby Moore and saw what it meant to the players, management and support staff to reach and win the final of a major international football tournament,” she wrote.

“I want to send my congratulations and that of my family to you all on reaching the final of the European Championships, and send my good wishes for tomorrow with the hope that history will record not only your success but also the spirit, commitment and pride with which you have conducted yourselves.”

In a letter sent on Saturday, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson wished the squad success. He complimented their cooperation and “sheer flair” and congratulated them on their achievements so far.

Southgate stated in his pre-match news conference: “It’s fantastic to have a letter from the Queen and Prime Minister to the whole team, and the recognition that all the players and staff have gone about this the right way.

“We had a fabulous reception leaving St George’s training ground with all the villages lining up the route. You got more of a sense of what’s going on outside of our bubble.

“Tomorrow, we are in a final and we are here to win. It is important how we are representing people and that legacy is there but now we want to bring the trophy home for everyone.”

In his position as president of the English Football Association, her grandson, Prince William, will be the senior royal delegate at the final.

“I can’t really believe this is happening. So exciting and I just wish you the very best of luck,” he said.

“You bring out the very best of England and we are all behind you. The whole country is behind you. So, bring it home.”

On Wednesday night, England created history by defeating Denmark 2-1 in extra time thanks to captain Harry Kane’s penalty kick.

On Sunday, the national team will play Italy. The Italians have looked strong throughout the tournament, but England is hoping for a historic win thanks to home-field advantage. A total of 65,000 people are expected to attend.

If England wins the tournament, Johnson is expected to declare a national holiday to commemorate the victory. More than 350,000 people have signed a petition asking for a day off if the team wins.

After more than half a century of agony and disappointment, the English people have rallied behind Southgate’s soldiers in the expectation that football will finally ‘come home.’

Many of Britain’s Sunday newspapers dedicated their front pages to the historic match in English.

The Sunday Express used the headline “For Queen and Country!” while the Sunday Mirror tabloid chose

“We Kane Be Heroes” alluding to England’s top scorer Harry Kane.

England has a 58 percent probability of beating Italy in the Euro 2020 final, according to Goldman Sachs.

While England has only reached the final of a major tournament once before, this will be Italy’s tenth.