England’s Lionesses take ‘football home’ with gripping Euro win

(Web via englandfootball.com)

By Mark Landler and Lizzie Dearden

LONDON — England’s nail-biting, come-from-behind victory over Spain in the European women’s soccer championship Sunday electrified the country, with euphoric fans cheering something utterly new for them: the dawn of a national soccer dynasty.

England, the defending champion, edged out Spain in a penalty shootout to hold on to the title it won in 2022, after conceding the first goal, as it had in its quarterfinal and semifinal games. The victory avenged England after its heartbreaking defeat to Spain in the World Cup women’s championship two years ago.

It also stamped the women’s team, nicknamed the Lionesses, as the proud standard-bearer for English soccer. England’s men’s team, known as the Three Lions, have not won a major championship since 1966, becoming a byword for sporting misery in a country that views itself as the home of soccer.

Instead, it is the Lionesses who have become regulars at the pinnacle of international soccer, showing grit and steely nerves as they rebounded from a sloppy start in the early games of this tournament, played in Switzerland.

“We’ve not made it easy for ourselves, we love the drama,” said Bethany Madden, 26, who watched the game with friends on two large television screens at the Victoria pub in southeast London. “But it’s made it such an exciting tournament. You can never rule the Lionesses out.”

It was a characteristically nerve-rattling performance by the Lionesses, with momentum at the St. Jakob-Park stadium in Basel swinging from one side to the other. Spain dominated the first half, but after England leveled the score at 1-1 in the second half of regular time, it finally finished off Spain 3-1 in the penalty kicks.

Moments after Chloe Kelly, a forward who came into the game as a substitute near the end of the first half, drilled in the final penalty kick, a jubilant crowd of English fans in Basel broke out into “Sweet Caroline,” the Neil Diamond standard that has become the unofficial anthem of the Lionesses.

Soon fans were chanting “Football’s coming home,” a refrain from “Three Lions,” the ever-hopeful theme song of the England men’s team. Having taken football home in 2022 by winning the European championship against Germany, England’s women have now done it again.

Tensions at the jam-packed Victoria reached a fever pitch during an agonizing extra-time period, as Spain’s players swarmed around England’s goal, missing multiple chances to score. “Come on, England!” fans cheered desperately at the TV screens, as a dreaded penalty shootout loomed.

“It’s unbelievable,” said a shocked John Carrick, 47, as he digested Kelly’s penalty kick. “I thought we were going out in the semis. They were underdogs the whole time. It’s amazing. I can’t believe it.”

For Spain, it was a bitter disappointment after a World Cup victory that was tarnished when the president of the Spanish football federation, Luis Rubiales, kissed one of the players, Jenni Hermoso, during an awards celebration, without her consent.

“You can’t always win,” said Aitana Bonmati, a dejected midfielder for the Spanish team.

The Lionesses’ winning ways have generated excitement in a country where their supporters say the women’s team has often been overlooked. There were no senior British royals or top political figures on hand in Sydney in 2023, when they played Spain in the World Cup.

But on Sunday, Prince William, the heir to the British throne and an enthusiastic soccer fan, cheered on the Lionesses from the stands. Later, the prince shook hands with players from both teams. British leaders, past and present, piled on to social media to hail a history-making victory.

“Champions!” posted Prime Minister Keir Starmer. “What a team. What a game. What drama. You dug deep when it mattered most and you’ve made the nation proud. History makers.”

“Back-to-back European champions!” Starmer’s predecessor, Rishi Sunak, wrote. “Congratulations to @Lionesses for an incredible achievement.”

Even before England won, fans at the Victoria professed hope that the Lionesses’ performance would increase the respect and attention granted to the women’s game.

“I think people are getting more invested in women’s football; I’ve been getting all my family into it,” Madden said. “People really like to see England doing well, which makes a difference from the men because we actually get to the final. I feel like more men are respecting women’s football in its own right.”

“The standard of the football has definitely increased,” said Sean Gair, 38. “Lots of my friends don’t pay attention to women’s football, but England have been building great momentum.”

It fell to King Charles III to place the women’s victory in the context of England’s long, unfulfilled soccer history.

“For more years than I care to remember, England fans have sung the famous chant, ‘football’s coming home,’” Charles posted. “As you return home with the trophy you won at Wembley three years ago, it is a source of great pride that, through sporting skill and awesome teamwork, the Lionesses have made those words ring true.”

(Rachel Chaundler contributed reporting from Zaragoza, Spain.)