After the Lionesses were denied a victory bus parade through London today after winning Euro 2022, a former sports minister told MailOnline today that the Football Association and Sadiq Khan “must do better” on equality.
Following England’s 2-1 victory over Germany in extra time at Wembley last night, the team and about 7,000 fans celebrated the victory in Trafalgar Square this afternoon.
This is the nation’s first major championship since 1966.
However, there is growing resentment that there won’t be the customary bus parade, which was given to the England men’s team despite them not having won a championship since 1966. Critics are blaming the FA and Mayor of London Sadiq Khan for this ‘disgusting’ decision.
Both in 2003, after England won the Rugby World Cup, and in 2005, when England’s cricket team won The Ashes, there were significant bus parades through London.
Anger increased as the BBC1 coverage of the Trafalgar Square event today was only given a 20-minute slot.
Additionally, there was no Downing Street gathering due to Boris Johnson’s attendance at David Trimble’s funeral.
The PM missed Wembley because he was attending a Cotswolds celebration of his 2017 covert marriage to Carrie Johnson.
Tory MP for Chatham and Aylesford and former sports minister Tracey Crouch told MailOnline: “If we are going to seize the opportunity on equality, we really must do better.”
I’m not sure why there wasn’t a parade for the Lionesses, but there might be a good reason.
If the men had won the euros last year, plans would have been in place for them.
She added that since the Lionesses are likely to take a vacation and the Women’s Premier League pre-season is set to start in the next three to four weeks, the opportunity to host one after the Trafalgar Square party may have passed.
On social media, supporters criticised the decision to forgo the parade, calling it a “real shame” and the “least that England deserve.”
Some people called it “shocking” and “absolutely disgusting” from the @MayorofLondon and others who could influence it, while another said, “Someone have a word.”
According to sources close to the celebration event, there won’t be an open-top bus parade due to safety concerns.
Trafalgar Square was reportedly used as an official fan zone for England’s semi-final and final, making it a safe space that was prepared to host an event like today’s celebration at a moment’s notice, according to a source with knowledge of the plans.
Based on anticipated attendance figures as well as safety concerns, the venue’s capacity was set at 7,000.
Because so many admirers showed up today, organisers informed MailOnline they were happy with the capacity that was established.
The Greater London Authority, Westminster Council, and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport collaborated to plan the celebration.
The Greater London Authority (GLA), the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), and Westminster Council organised the party today.
However, it is unclear who made the decision to forgo a bus parade because Westminster Council has been referring inquiries to the GLA.
MailOnline has requested comments from the GLA and DCMS.
Before hoisting the trophy today, England’s players and manager, Sarina Wiegman, will participate in a Q&A session. The event will be broadcast live on BBC One at 12.40 p.m.
FA CEO Mark Bullingham stated that it is “only appropriate” for spectators to join the players in celebrating today’s “historic victory” in Trafalgar Square.
Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, expressed his excitement to witness the team win the trophy once more in Trafalgar Square, saying, “They’ve broken records, and now they’ve made history.”
As for the victory celebration in Trafalgar Square, Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries said: “I’m delighted that we have worked quickly with the FA.”
Today, visitors can bring their own food and water bottles, as long as they are not made of glass. There will also be free water refills available.
In front of 87,000 spectators, the Lionesses defeated Germany 2-1 at Wembley Stadium yesterday, giving the nation its first major tournament victory since 1966.
In celebration of their historic Euro 2022 victory over Germany, which marked the country’s first major football victory in 56 years, England’s victorious Lionesses partied with thousands of fans.
The groggy players belted out Sweet Caroline and admitted that they had “partied more than we had actually played football in the last 24 hours.”
Following Chloe Kelly’s extra-time goal last night, around 7,000 fans erupted at the Alex Scott-hosted event in Trafalgar Square, where people were dancing in the fountains.
After MailOnline reported that they had been dancing and singing in their hotel until 4am, many of the players were sporting dark sunglasses, but when the crowd cheered them on, they showed that they were ready to celebrate once more this afternoon.
Leah Williamson, the team’s captain, said to the large crowd in central London today: “We’ve partied more than we’ve played football in the last 24 hours.”
What we’ve done for women and young girls who can look up to us and be inspired by us, she continued.
I believe that England did a fantastic job of hosting the event, and we have changed the game in this nation and, hopefully, throughout Europe and the rest of the world.
However, we declared that we intended to make victory our legacy, so that’s what we did.
Miss Kelly, the match-winning player for England, declared: “I ain’t stopped dancing, my feet just keep going” as she danced wildly on stage and serenaded the audience with a rendition of Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond.
Everyone is quite excited. We enjoyed a nice night’s sleep last night, although some of us woke up feeling a little worse for wear.
Then, as her teammates danced around her, Rachel Daly mounted the stage and started singing the Tina Turner classic River Deep Mountain High.
Ella Toone, who scored the opening goal, laughed when asked about Harry Kane’s congrats for her top corner goal finish and said, “Yeah, I taught him that.”
Lioness Lucy Bronze expressed excitement for the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand the following year, saying, “There’s still one more we can get our hands on next year.”
Free admission was available for spectators beginning at 11 a.m. on Monday, and they could view tournament highlights on large screens while listening to live music performed by DJ Monki.
After being hailed as heroes, the winning team’s players and manager, Sarina Wiegman, participated in a Q&A session before receiving the trophy.
Although the England men’s team hasn’t won a championship since 1966, there is growing resentment that there won’t be the customary bus parade.
Critics blame the Football Association and Mayor of London Sadiq Khan for failing to organise one.
Because Boris Johnson is attending David Trimble’s burial, there will also be no Downing Street reception.
The PM missed Wembley because he was attending a Cotswolds celebration of his 2017 covert marriage to Carrie Johnson.
The Greater London Authority, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), and Westminster Council organised the Trafalgar Square Lionesses event, which was broadcast live on BBC One.
Due to the overwhelming number of people who showed up to support the Lionesses, the Metropolitan Police was forced to advise fans to stay away and watch the event from home at noon.
After Chloe Kelly’s extra-time goal sealed the victory, her parents expressed their pride in their daughter and acknowledged that she was now a “superstar.”
MailOnline quoted her father Noel as saying: “It’s been unbelievable to see.” When she was younger, I didn’t play with her a lot, but my boys did. She is truly clever.
Oh my god, it is incredible, her mother Jane said in addition. She has been kicking a ball ever since she was able to walk, and each time it gets bigger and bigger.
One of my proudest times in life is right now. She is unquestionably a superstar.
Chloe’s parents had made the trip to London for the players’ jubilant welcome at Trafalgar Square.
Yvonne Morrison, 61, went to Trafalgar Square with her nine-year-old grandson Ronnie to see the Lionesses.
“They’ve raised the profile of women’s football, it’s long overdue,” said Ms. Morrison, a Wiltshire native.
Hopefully, it will improve their status and pay. It’s high time they were on equal footing.
What’s really nice for us, she continued, is that Ronnie is obviously a man and that he is also very interested in women’s football.
Ronnie, a nine-year-old football enthusiast, described it as “amazing” to celebrate the victory with his grandmother.
After a record-breaking 23.3 million people watched the Lionesses win the Euro 2022 final, England’s proud of its courageous—and hungover—Lionsesses partied until 4am ahead of the Trafalgar Square victory party.
The Queen congratulated the team after their historic 2-1 victory over Germany, and they later partied late into the night at Wembley, on the team bus, and even in the parking lot outside their hotel.
The team ended more than 50 years of pain, and the 87,192 spectators in the stadium broke the record for either a men’s or women’s Euro final.
After defeating Germany in a close final that captivated millions and tens of thousands watching in pubs and fan parks across the nation, super substitute Miss Kelly fired them into the history books in extra time.
The winning team partied until 4 a.m. at the Lensbury Resort, according to MailOnline, and many of them emerged five hours later with groggy eyes and sunglasses on after getting as little as two hours of sleep.
With 17.4 million viewers for the match on BBC1 — 5.7 million more than the previous record for a women’s match — and an additional 5.9 million tuning in via BBC iPlayer or the BBC website yesterday, many people in the nation may share these sentiments.
The most watched television programme of 2022 is the match.
Sarina Wiegman, the manager, described the party this morning as “crazy,” adding, “There was lots of music.” numerous dances.
And the English are really good drinkers. A little bit too much alcohol was present. But it’s okay.
We liked it. It’s a lot of fun to party when you’ve accomplished these things.
Leah Williamson, the team’s captain, was greeted with loud applause as she left the team hotel carrying the European championship trophy.
Leah struggled to raise the silver trophy above her head while donning a red bucket hat.
I’m feeling a little rough this morning, she continued, telling the BBC.
One of the first competitors to leave the hotel with her boyfriend Scott Moore was matchwinner Chloe Kelly. His girlfriend’s name was written across the back of the England shirt he was wearing.
heading back to the hotel in Teddington, southwest London, the couple loaded up their car.
Before the Euro 2022 victory celebrations, thousands of supporters lined up outside the fanzone at Trafalgar Square in the heart of London, many of them sporting England flags and replica shirts.
One of them was 52-year-old Chris North, who described it as “amazing” that he could share the victory with his two kids.
We have always supported women’s sports in our family because my wife was a former women’s rugby player, but last night was especially motivating, he said.
“It was so exciting to watch the game.” It’s a brand-new dawn, which is wonderful.
He claimed that his six-year-old daughter is thrilled to see “new role models” in the world.
It’s “about time,” according to Mr. North, that women’s football received the “level up” it merited.
He continued, “There are still enormous differences between the two, and this will only help, because it’s just not fair — not in today’s society.”
The Lionesses’ victory on Sunday, according to 32-year-old Lindsay Parslow, was a “big thing for women’s football.”
It’s more visible and well-known now than it was before. And let’s face it, the men were beaten!
Ms. Parslow, who is from Rochester, Kent, attended the festivities in Trafalgar Square with her partner and their sons, who are 10 and 12.
She expressed hope that her “big football fans” sons will now start paying closer attention to women’s football.