Wayne Rooney is making a habit of letting the pub trade down. His broken metatarsal scuppered our chances in Euro 2004 and the 2006 World Cup, and he's now out of two crucial qualifying matches for next year's Euro championship.
The point, of course, is that brewers, producers and licensees all crave football success as much as the fans. When England's winning, so are the pubs. Big games attract big pub audiences. The feel-good factor lifts the nation. And more people drink to toast triumphs and be part of the celebrations.
Rooney's injury harms our chances of football success, just at the time when we need it most. Last week's revelations that S&N's beer sales were down 17% in June, and fell over 10% in July reveal just how tough trading conditions have become.
British Beer & Pub Association figures show standard lager sales down 12.5% in June, compared to the previous June. Premium lager was even harder hit - down 16% over the year. June's fall is probably the worst ever single month dip the trade has ever seen. Derek Andrew, at Marston's, told MA this week: "In 27 years working in the trade I have never experienced anything quite as bad as this."
The abysmal weather is obviously the culprit in June. How much it contributed to the fall in July when the smoking ban began is hard to work out, but it probably still did far more damage than anything else.
As ever in this complex trade, it's not all doom and gloom. Pubs that normally lose business when the sun's out have been doing OK. Interestingly, although they're land-locked, they've not necessarily been losing their smoking customers.
Real-ale brewers have also found the weather favouring them. The switch from ale to lager they normally see in summer has not been happening, so their sales are bucking the national beer trends.
With the weather set to improve over the next few weeks, and some big football and rugby games coming up, the prospects for the trade overall are looking brighter than they have for some time.
But if the rain clouds are disappearing, there are some very black financial clouds on the horizon. Turmoil in the world stock markets is threatening Britain's golden run of the past decade and more.
The housing boom is drawing to an end, interest rates are rising, and belts will have to tighten. Pubs must be at the top of their game to keep attracting in the punters. Hurry back Wayne, we need you.