No one with a shred of credibility can now resurrect the stale notion that people are simply not interested in watching women’s football. Not after Sunday. We have now reached the moment for which so many players, coaches, and administrators have labored so diligently for so many years, as attendance records tumbled and 87,000 fans showed up at Wembley to see England crowned European champions.
I was ecstatic on Sunday, but the sensation of being at Wembley was weird. England lost 2009 final in Finland by a score of 6-2 against Germany, and the contrast between then and now is comparable to the difference between night and day.
In those days, my England teammates and I were often admonished to “get back in the kitchen” when we returned from tournaments, and the 2009 final didn’t feel all that different from any previous game.
This tidal change explains why I was overcome with emotion on Sunday when my old teammate Jill Scott entered the final as a substitute. Jill, who played in the 2009 championship game and is now 35 years old, has been a guiding light for women’s football. Jill’s superpower is superior emotional intelligence, and she epitomizes the sense of responsibility for advancing the women’s game that has been shared by all England players in the past.
It is a powerful collective worldview, but we must not forget Hope Powell’s pioneering role in its formation. Hope, who was in many ways years ahead of her time as manager of the Lionesses in 2009, fought for years to improve a lot of women players in England and did so much to set the foundations and construct the framework that allowed Sarina Wiegman’s team to win Euro 2022.
Remember that Hope worked in a society that did not always promote and appreciate women, let less female players. Since then, shifting attitudes and the #MeToo movement have helped to alter the narrative, but England’s brilliant captain, Leah Williamson, was correct when she stated that she believed the tournament’s success would contribute to greater female equality.
She recognizes that she is now on a large stage and is embracing the opportunities that the platform affords women in many roles. Leah recognizes the societal significance of women’s football and exemplifies how England players of different generations stand shoulder to shoulder with the idea that they can use their platform to better the lives of future generations.
In 2009, the English women’s game was still a ways off from being a professional sport. This part-time status explains why I spent the majority of my playing career with Swedish and American clubs.
My American trip in particular was a turning point in my life. It opened my eyes to the fact that, in the English game, we were so appreciative of receiving the bare minimum and so accustomed to asking for the most fundamental items.
Women footballers in the United States have long been eager to scream and yell for recognition and to take collective action to fight for equal pay. Living in the United States taught me the importance of having a voice and using it to continue fighting for improvement. This requires considerable effort, which explains why so many people were filled with pride when England eventually lifted the cup.
Tony Leighton should be included with them. The retired journalist has done so much for women’s football in England. He was covering the game when almost no one else was and, most importantly, possessed the journalistic ability to bring our stories to life.
Tony saw the value and promise of the women’s game at a time when the rest of the world did not appear to be prepared for it. He questioned norms and persisted in pressuring editors to provide the necessary room to cover them. Female players of my generation owe him a great deal of gratitude.
Back in 2009, English players have the skill but lacked the exposure to regular, highly competitive games required to gain the crucial ingame management and tactical nuance knowledge. Germany and the United States were so far ahead of the competition at the time that it is not surprising that Germany won eight European championships between 1989 and 2013.
Now that teams from all over the world, not just England, have caught up, it is nearly unthinkable to imagine a team dominating for such an extended period again in future European Championship and World Cup competitions.
Several countries will believe they can win the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand next summer due to the strength of the roster and the high technical standard.
Such fierce competition should serve to maximize the game’s economic development, with struggles for, among other things, television rights providing the necessary funding to assist domestic clubs in achieving the level of inclusivity and diversity that English women’s football sorely needs. Leah Williamson and her fantastic teammates have finally assured women’s football has a powerful voice; our task now is to ensure we keep using it properly.
