I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but there’s a World Cup going on – and our family has dual allegiance to both the USA (playing later today, as I write this) and my native England.
I’ll admit that not every soccer game is amazing, but even the most casual fan must admit that England’s victory over Mexico on Sunday night was dramatic in the extreme. We were yelling, pacing, biting nails, cheering, booing… this was a game that had everything. And the tension, the sense of a powerful moment actually began well before the game – because this wasn’t just about the football (I mean, soccer), this was about the place and the occasion.
The ghosts of Azteca
For England supporters of a certain age, the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City isn’t simply another football stadium. It’s a place haunted by history.
The last time England played a World Cup match there was forty years ago in 1986. It was the quarter-final against Argentina. Lionel Messi wasn’t born yet, but the best player of that generation was named Diego Maradona – and he produced one of the greatest individual performances football has ever seen, scoring both the infamous “Hand of God” goal (where he punched the ball into the net) and also “the goal of the century” just 4 minutes later.
England left Azteca angry and heartbroken. Argentina went on to win their first World Cup.
Now, forty years later, England was back, but this time playing the home team, Mexico.
The stadium itself presents challenges long before the referee blows the whistle. At 7,352 feet above sea level it’s hard to even breathe – unless you’re acclimatized, which the England players were not. The crowd is among the loudest anywhere in world football, and Mexican supporters reportedly spent much of the previous night outside England’s hotel sounding car horns and setting off fireworks in an attempt to deny the players a good night’s sleep.
And this Mexico side had been playing really well – they had won every game in the tournament so far and had not conceded a single goal.
I was very nervous. England were playing against ghosts of one of the most painful moments of our history, playing against the altitude, playing against eighty-thousand passionate supporters, and an entire nation desperate to see the Mexican team win. Oh yes, and there was a literal thunderstorm just before kick-off, causing the game to be delayed by an hour… just to add to the tension.
Then everything became even harder
Against all expectations England managed to take control. They started calmly then suddenly broke through with goals in the 36th and 38th minute to take a 2-0 lead. I was ecstatic, but Mexico hit back four minutes later to leave the score at 2-1 to England at half-time.
Then the game changed. A red card reduced England to ten men.
Suddenly a promising situation became an exercise in survival. England scored a penalty, Mexico scored a penalty, and it was 3-2 with 21 minutes to play. But Mexico had the momentum and an extra player – and they unleashed wave after wave of attacks. The atmosphere was so intense that England captain Harry Kane lost his voice trying to communicate with his team over the din.
Enter Dan Burn
Then came one of my favourite moments.
England introduced Dan Burn. Dan Burn was born 5 miles from my home town, and plays for my local club Newcastle United. As a kid I went to church with the girl who is now his wife. He isn’t a huge star. He made his England debut in 2025 at the age of 32 – an age when many soccer players are considering retirement.
If you only judged footballers by highlight reels, Dan Burn probably wouldn’t be your first choice. He isn’t the quickest player. He doesn’t score spectacular goals. He isn’t the player children pretend to be in the back garden.
But standing at nearly six feet seven inches tall, this 34 year old defender possesses something few other players can offer.
Exactly what England needed.
The England coach brought him off the bench with 18 minutes left for a very particular purpose. As Mexico launched cross after cross into the penalty area, Burn headed away seemingly everything that came near him.
He wasn’t England’s star player. He wasn’t even needed for most of the match. But in those final desperate minutes, he became exactly the right person for exactly the right job.
Reliable networks aren’t built from eleven superstars
Most telecom operators don’t need obscure SIP troubleshooting expertise every day. They don’t need someone who has spent years unravelling complex SBC behavior. They don’t need a specialist in unusual routing failures, media path problems, STIR/SHAKEN deployment, or one-in-a-thousand interoperability issues every week.
Until suddenly… they do.
Perhaps it’s a major customer outage. Perhaps a migration doesn’t quite behave as expected. Perhaps an emergency services call flow isn’t working correctly. Perhaps a fraud incident appears out of nowhere.
In those moments, general engineering knowledge is still incredibly valuable, but sometimes what you really need is your own Dan Burn.
Someone who has solved this exact problem before.
Someone who remains calm under pressure.
Someone whose particular combination of experience suddenly becomes the most important skill on the field.
The value of specialists
Successful soccer teams aren’t simply collections of the eleven most talented players. They’re carefully balanced squads.
They contain creativity, leadership, experience, youth, pace, strength… And specialists who might only be needed for twenty crucial minutes.
The best telecom organisations are remarkably similar.
Their core engineering teams keep everything running day after day, but the strongest organizations also know when to bring in specialist expertise.
Not because their own engineers aren’t capable, but because unusual situations deserve unusual experience.
That’s the role Award Consulting often plays.
Some of our clients do use us every week – we’re a core part of the team. But for others, we’re the people you call when the situation becomes unusually complex, when the stakes are high, and when years of specialist experience can make the difference between a long, painful recovery and a successful outcome.
When your network suddenly finds itself defending against relentless pressure… it’s reassuring to know you’ve already got the right specialist on your bench. Contact us for more information about our support retainers.
