Commentary: England’s Euros win proves women’s football no longer just a niche sport

SEOUL: On Jul 31, England’s women achieved what the men failed to do for 56 years – bring home a major football title.

The Lionesses defeated Germany 2-1 at London’s Wembley Stadium, making history as they won the UEFA Women’s European Championships for the first time.

They did this in front of 87,192 spectators at Wembley – the highest attended match in the tournament’s history, beating the men’s record too. In England, the viewing figures were also impressive with 23.3 million watching.

In terms of spectacle and atmosphere, it was a match to the men’s final of 2021 which saw England lose to Italy in the same stadium. The 1966 World Cup is still the last major trophy that the men have won. 

For perhaps the first time, the team was seen as “England” and not just “England’s women”, with the whole country sharing in the success.

Interest has surged elsewhere with Wales expecting to attract 10,000 fans to a World Cup qualifier against Slovenia in September which would be almost a doubling of its record attendance. 

It has been a busy and important summer for women’s football. A day before England won, there were celebrations in Brazil as they won South America’s championship, defeating Colombia.

In July, Morocco became the first Arab team to reach the final of the African Women’s Nations Cup, losing 2-1 to South Africa but thrilling the nation and attracting more than 50,000 fans to the final.

Women’s football has long been derided by certain sections of football fandom as being nowhere near the standard of men's, but the current team has shown that is no longer the case.

“The quality of the England team and the tournament as a whole was fantastic,” said Jamie Carragher, former Liverpool star and a leading television pundit. 

Footbal