Only two footballers have had the honour of captaining England in a senior World Cup final: the late Bobby Moore and Millie Bright, who announced her international retirement on Monday. That alone ensures the 32-year-old’s Lionesses career will leave an indelible mark on English football. Her entry on to the list of England greats had been guaranteed a year earlier, though, as one of the key heroines of the summer of 2022.
When Leah Williamson prepared to raise the Euro 2022 trophy at Wembley after England’s victory against Germany had secured the Lionesses’ first major trophy, she chose to angle it slightly into the direction of the woman next to her, Bright, her vice-captain, so they could lift it together, acknowledging Bright’s major contribution. As the pair held aloft the 60cm-high trophy, weighing 6.7kg, Bright’s tattooed forearm was centre stage in front of the white fireworks erupting behind them in a colourful scene of euphoria.
