Joyful young fans and a friendly atmosphere
The abundance of cheap tickets meant Euro 2022 was affordable for families – with children able to get into some group stage matches for as little as £7.50. The stands were consequently packed with many more children than you usually see at international tournaments and the catering was doing as much trade in fizzy drinks and crisps as it was in beer. It all led to a much friendlier atmosphere than you often get at men’s international matches. There was no booing of national anthems, no need for segregation, a much more minimal security presence and a lot of dancing and singing.
Woke up still feeling like this… 😎❤️
— Alex Scott MBE (@AlexScott) July 27, 2022
pic.twitter.com/7VPLQ5mtNQ
Northern Ireland’s tournament debut
Northern Ireland qualifying for their first tournament finals meant it was not only the hosts representing the home nations at Euro 2022. The lowest-ranked nation of the final 16, Northern Ireland overcame Ukraine in a playoff to reach the finals. They scored only once during their three defeats in Group A – Julie Nelson’s goal against Norway – but the midfielder Rachel Furness described being there as a game-changer for women’s football in Northern Ireland, saying “qualifying for the Euros has worked wonders”.
A footballing lesson from France
Entering the tournament as one of the favourites, France came up short at the semi-final stage. However, along the way they had bedazzled in Rotherham with an astonishing first-half performance against Italy in their opening group game. Grace Geyoro became the first woman to score a first-half hat-trick at a Euros finals as France raced into a 5-0 lead at half-time. The French domination in the first half was even more impressive than England’s 8-0 rout of Norway the following day. Italy’s eventual 5-1 defeat seemed to knock all the confidence out of the squad, who ended up bottom of Group D.
Alessia Russo’s outrageous backheel
Georgia Stanway can fairly feel slightly aggrieved that the absolute screamer she scored in England’s tricky quarter-final against Spain was eclipsed as the Lionesses’ goal of the tournament by Alessia Russo’s incredible backheel against Sweden in the semi-final. England had endured a tough opening against the Swedes, but by the time Russo had the audacity to attempt her backheel, it demonstrated the swagger with which the Lionessess were marching on to Wembley.
No penalty shootout heartbreak
Penalty shootouts might be the highest drama a tournament can bring, but the Women’s Euros got through all seven knockout games without them. England’s comeback against Spain and Linda Sembrant’s last-gasp winner for Sweden meant no woman missed a fateful kick to send her nation home.
More good news for Neil Diamond’s bank account
Yet again providing the soundtrack as England reached a final at Wembley, Neil Diamond has had another few bumper weeks for royalties for people playing Sweet Caroline. Even the Band of the Coldstream Guards at Buckingham Palace got in on the act.
Alexandra Popp finally made a Euros
Dreadful injury problems through the years have repeatedly robbed Alexandra Popp, 31, of the opportunity to shine at a European Championship finals, despite having won more than 100 caps. But she had a tournament to remember as Germany made their way to Wembley, netting six goals and becoming the first German player to score in five successive matches at a finals.
However, her Euros curse came back to haunt her as she picked up an injury in the warm-up on Sunday and missed the final against England.
The little car that could came back
The first time a tiny remote-controlled car drove on to the pitch to deliver the match ball to the referee before the opening game of the men’s Euro 2020 tournament last year, fans were left asking: “What have we just watched?”
But it has since become a beloved staple of European tournaments. The car only appears at the opening match, the semi-final and the final, but it was greeted with huge cheers at Wembley on Sunday.
The car, inevitably, has its own Twitter account. Just don’t mention that as soon as it is out of shot, somebody unceremoniously picks it up and runs off with it, because the little Volkswagen obviously cannot be trusted not to drive back on to the pitch during the game.
WOWEEEE!!! Congratulations @Lionesses! After all those years of singing it... it's finally come home!! ⚽️🎉 Let me know if you need me to carry the trophy for you. 🏆 #ENG #WEURO2022
— Tiny Football Car & Tiny Buzz ⚡️ (@TinyFootballCar) July 31, 2022
- Tiny Buzz 🚐⚡️ pic.twitter.com/YPyuN351Z8
Chloe Kelly’s iconic celebration
Chloe Kelly’s joyous shirt-waving run to embrace England’s substitutes and coaching team, having scored what turned out to be the 110th-minute winner, was surely worth the subsequent yellow card for overexuberant celebrating. The referee who handed it to her, Kateryna Monzul of Ukraine, had spent five days sheltering underground in Kharkiv while it was being bombed by Russian forces.
Record crowd after record crowd
The tournament had been talked about as changing the game in terms of attendances – and it broke record after record. The 68,871 at the opening game at Old Trafford, where England beat Austria, was a new record for the women’s game. Then Milton Keynes and Sheffield in turn set new records for women’s Euros fixtures not featuring the host nation.
On Sunday, 87,192 people watched the final. Held at the same venue as last year’s defeat for England’s men against Italy, but without Covid restrictions in place, it became the most-attended Euros final in history, beating a record that had stood since 1964.
