England Lionesses have been backed to defend their European crown by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and bring the feel good factor of 2022 back to the country.
Sarina Wiegman’s side won the tournament on home soil in 2022 but have been given a tough group with 2017 champions Netherlands, France and tournament debutants Wales, but the PM is confident they can repeat their success in Switzerland.
Sir Keir addressed the squad at St George’s Park before they jet off to the tournament and is confident they have what it takes to bring the trophy back.
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Speaking exclusively to FourFourTwo, The PM said: “I’m confident in their ability. I’ve just seen them train and you could see their dedication, their skill, their professionalism. They go in as defending champions, it was an incredible win in 2022, they nearly did it in the World Cup as well.
“They’re a fantastic team and I have every confidence in them and they’ve got every confidence in themselves. They’ve got a tough group but they told me ‘to win you’ve got to beat the best’ so bring it on.
“You can see what their inner spirit is like and that’s what drives them on to such brilliant victories.”
Arsenal’s Champions League win this season is another reason the PM believes that the Lionesses can go all the way with five of the Gunners winning side in Wiegman’s squad for the Euros.
England kick off the defence of their title on July 5 against France in Zurich before facing the Netherlands on July 9 before rounding off the group against neighbours Wales on July 13.
He added: “Leah Williamson and Beth Mead hold a special place for all Arsenal and England fans, but we are lucky to have so many Arsenal players in the squad.
“I think success breeds success and when you play at club level together, you get an understanding which then translates onto the pitch.
“We should remember there are six or seven of the squad going to this tournament who have not played in an international competition before, so they’re making their debut.
“That will be a special moment and also a moment for some of the more experienced players to show what they’ve got as they bring new players through, so it’s a really good blend.”
The Lionesses made history when they beat Germany at a Wembley final 2-1 in 2022.
And Sir Keir looks back on that tournament fondly for the good that it did for the Women’s game and girls sport in general.
He added: “I’ve been supporting England all my life, and I’ve been to many games, particularly the men’s games where the winning bit hasn’t quite come about, where we’ve gone so far and not actually won it and usually lost on penalties.
“So to see the England Lionesses win in 2022 was absolutely amazing.
“My own personal memories are that I took my daughter to one of those games, usually I go to football with my son, but my daughter was drawn to the game in a way that she hadn’t been when she saw men play,
“In particular the sort of sheer joy that the women had playing as well as the professionalism and the commitment and when they won in that game, they were celebrating on the pitch for a long time and my daughter was absolutely enthralled by that.
“My wider memory is that it was so amazing to win in 2022, and it changed football, women’s football because the interest in participation in those watching and playing has gone up massively since then.
“And that is at every level and I said to the players that they have changed the lives of girls and young women who they will never know, they’ll never meet, but what an incredible legacy that is.”
That legacy will live on as the PM announced plans for new school sport partnerships and an enrichment framework to push schools to ensure children have access to sport and extracurricular activity.
And he credited the Lionesses as they had ‘pushed’ the Government ‘hard’ to do more for equal access to sport for young women and girls.
