England and Wales fans kick start celebrations early before historic World Cup clash that will see Brits down 12M pints

EXCITED England fans hit the pubs early as the Three Lions prepare to take on Wales in a historic Battle of Britain World Cup clash.

Gareth Southgate’s men will face off against the Dragons at 7pm to secure a top spot in the group.

Dan CharityEngland and Wales fans hit the pubs early in Doha[/caption]

It is the first time two UK teams have ever met in the World Cup – with the game already being dubbed the “Battle of Britain”.

The two countries will come to a standstill tonight as 16million Brits tuning in at home splurge £215million on booze and takeaways.

Others will head to the pub to roar their support for the Three Lions as Harry Kane and Gareth Bale go head-to-head.

Fans are expected to sink 12million pints to give the struggling hospitality sector a £75million boost.

The roads will be busy as workers skip out the office early – with traffic 13 per cent worse at 3pm last Friday ahead of the USA clash.

Savvy Brits have already planned for their sore heads tomorrow with annual leave up 12 per cent.

Meanwhile in Qatar, 8,000 Three Lions fans are expected to watch the game live alongside 6,000 from Wales.

Some supporters already got into the spirit early as they packed out pubs in Doha’s Red Lion pub last night.

England and Wales fans appeared to put any rivalries aside as they necked £12 pints together in the popular Qatar haunt.

There was singing from the Welsh contingent, who are hoping their team can win by four goals and progress to the knock-out stage.

Any margin would be good enough if USA and Iran draw at 7pm tonight – but a loss will see them crash out of the tournament.

Rob Page’s team have a mountain to climb after they drew their first match against the USA 1-1 and suffered a devastating 2-0 loss to Iran.

For England, a dull 0-0 stalemate against the US wiped the jubilation from our historic 6-2 opener against Iran.

The Three Lions only need to avoid losing by four goals against the Welsh to reach the last 16.

A win would see England top the group but if they lose, they will be leapfrogged by whoever wins out of USA v Iran.

Heartbreakingly, our hopes of it coming home will be dashed entirely if the Three Lions lose by four or more goals and someone takes three points in the other game of the group.

Regardless of score, tonight’s landmark match will add to the tapestry of British footballing history.

England have not lost to Wales since 1984 and are unbeaten in the last six meetings between the two nations.

They last came head-to-head in an official tournament at Euro 2016 when the Three Lions beat the Dragons 2-1.

Speaking about the rivalry, Southgate said: “They’re here and we are here — it’s like any two countries whose borders are next to each other.

“For me, it’s a great sporting rivalry — it’s no more than that — but that might not be mutual.”

Dan CharityEnglish and Welsh fans ignored the rivalry in Doha last night[/caption]

PAThe Welsh are hoping to progress to the next stage of the competition[/caption]

PAThousands of England fans are heading to Doha’s Al Rayyan Stadium[/caption]

PAWales have their World Cup dreams pinned on tonight’s game[/caption]