My co-wokrer (also from the US) decided to step up on the pitch when we got to that part of the tour.

Needless to say, the Brits take 'football' very seriously and you'd have thought he was making an assisination attempt on POTUS or something.

It wasn't a smart thing to do for a lot of reasons, not the least of which was reinforcing the narrative of being obnoxious Americans.

As soon as he started walking up there, it was like: