England defeated Germany 2-1 this Sunday in a historic final of the Women’s European Football Championship, which was played at the iconic Wembley Stadium in London.
Germany, a powerhouse in women’s football, was going for its ninth European championship and had always shown superiority over England in the past.
England, meanwhile, were aiming for the first continental trophy and came to this match as a favourite, having shown great dominance in the preliminary matches with 15 goals and only one against.
The match did not start very well for Germany, with their star striker Alexandra Popp relegated to the bench with an obvious injury. But the Germans launched an aggressive game from the beginning, with a physical game, well answered by the English who received a yellow card four times.
Both teams disputed dominance and the first half it ended 0-0.
The English opened the scoring in the minute 62 with a goal from Ella Toone, but the Germans tied the 79′ thanks to Lina Magull.
That caused an extension, and the 110′ Chloe Kelly scored the second goal for England, which gave them the championship.
The tournament in general was of transcendental significance, not only because it defined the continental hierarchy among the European teams, but that gave a great boost to women’s football so that it reaches the level of prominence that men’s has.
For the Golden Boot
The party does not sun or decided the European champion country. The Golden Boot was also in dispute, with two rivals aspiring to that trophy.
The eyes were on England striker Beth Mead and veteran German striker Alexandra Popp, who each scored six goals in their five games played so far.
Popp, in addition, was emerging as the second soccer player (male or female), after the Frenchman Michel Platini in 1984, to score in every European Championship match.
Mead was looking to equal the record of seven goals for England in a single European Championship set by Alan Shearer in 1996.
The German Popp, who had been injured for several months and it was considered a miracle that she had even entered the court, he had to stay on the bench.
Mead was substituted at the minute 61, but it was done anyway the trophy, since he was ahead of Popp in assisted goals, the way in which the tie for the number of goals is broken.
The technical directors
A milestone was also at stake for the technical directors of the respective teams.
The one from England, the Dutch Sarina Wiegman -who won the trophy with the National Team Low in 2017-, she had the chance to be the first coach to win the European championship with two different nations. She finally succeeded.
Her German counterpart Martina Voss-Tecklenburg aspired to be the second woman, after her compatriot Silvia Neid, to win the competition as a player and coach.
The Women’s Euro Cup 2022 was definitely a great success for England, both on and off the pitch.
The “Leonas” team captivated the country with its fearless style of play, drawing record numbers of stadium attendees, delighting fans in a carnival atmosphere and receiving unprecedented media coverage for women’s sports .
In addition to making national team members famous, women’s football could be catapulted to much higher levels, both in England and elsewhere.
The big question connoisseurs are asking themselves is what impact the success of this tournament will have on the advancement of women’s sports.
What did the fans who followed the Women’s Euro Cup closely think for the first time?
“I was never interested in women’s football before, But now I’m addicted She is a breath of fresh air. Intense, resilient and sincere, great players with excellent skills” – Larry Dickens, from Shropshire, England.
“I would say that half of my friends who are football fans suddenly they are talking about the women’s game. They even know the names of the players!” – Tim Williamson, Arsenal fan.
“For me it was just good quality football and a safe and friendly environment” – Barry Critchely, bus driver.
“The best night of my life! I loved my first experience, an amazing atmosphere… now I’m deciding which (women’s) club to follow” – Helen, from Sheffield.
“I love that now the names of the teams are mentioned of women. It feels like a real game changer in role models that I hope will inspire my daughters” – Mark Reid, from Derby.
“Inspirational moments in sport can be an incredible catalyst for change. But it is only achieved if they are backed by a strategy to support girls and women” – Baz Moffat, from London.
Women’s soccer has already enjoyed a dramatic increase in popularity for a few years, but this particular tournament broke attendance records, with coverage on television, radio and the internet attracting millions.
The final filled the capacity of 87 ,192 chairs at Wembley Stadium, the highest attendance for a European Championship final – feminine or masculine- in history.
In 1964, the men’s final between Spain and the then Soviet Union at the Bernabéu stadium had a box office of 68,173. The men’s final of 2020 at Wembley between England and Italy was restricted by the covid pandemic and then reached 67,173 spectators.
Before the final, the total attendance of 487,871 had already broken the record for a women’s European championship, which was 240,24 .
The figure was already predicted when the opening match at Manchester’s Old Trafford stadium registered an unprecedented attendance for an individual match in the Women’s Euro Cup in 67.871 people.
“This will inspire many people. If there is no legacy left after this (…) then what are we doing?” ex-Arsenal star Ian Wright wondered before the game.
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The director of the Football Association of England for the women’s game, Sue Campbell, had an answer: “The legacy really starts before the tournament. I think most people think that it is something that happens after a tournament, but we have been working on very good legacy projects”.
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