Women's Euro 2025: A ceiling-smashing achievement for Wales but sport always demands more

ITV News

6 hours ago

The moment has finally arrived.
There are some - former players, the trailblazers who fought for the formation of a women's national side - who have been looking forward to this for decades.
Some of Rhian Wilkinson's current crop, players like captain Angharad James, Jess Fishlock and Sophie Ingle, lived through the professionalisation of our national women's setup. They have also experienced heartbreak in previous attempts to reach the finals of a major tournament.
Then there is the younger generation of players, wide-eyed with excitement but acutely aware of struggles their predecessors endured.
To all of them, this moment, a first ever major tournament for our national women's side, will represent something different but will be equally significant.
The players themselves have appeared relaxed in the build-up and there is a clear desire to soak in everything this tournament has to offer.
But in the quieter moments, a reality will dawn.
This is unquestionably the biggest moment in the careers of all the 23 players who earned their place in Switzerland.
The lights shine just a little bit brighter at these tournaments, the pressure just a little higher, the atmosphere just a touch more suffocating.
It is impossible to know how they will react when the talking stops and the whistle goes at 6:00pm local time in the idyllic Swiss city of Lucerne tomorrow.
The players themselves probably don't know. How can they?
But it's a moment that they won't want to let pass them by. Getting to this stage is a groundbreaking, ceiling-smashing achievement but sport always demands more. Manager Wilkinson would certainly scoff, with disdain, at the idea of simply making up the numbers here.
But to some outside the camp, the results will not matter. The impact, the significance of seeing Welsh women compete on this stage is enough.
And so all eyes now turn to the first game, an opener against the Dutch. The challenge throughout the group stage is fairly consistent - Netherlands, France and England are all ranked among the best teams in the world.
But the opener takes on added significance. An encouraging performance, a draw or even an upset could propel Wales to exceed everyone's wildest dreams. It works both ways, though, and a heavy defeat would be a hammer blow to confidence levels and seeds of doubt would be sewn.
Many in camp have already recognised that few outside of Wales are expecting much from them. But yesterday goalkeeper Olivia Clark encouraged doubters to continue writing her side off, suggesting they are comfortable with their underdog status. Captain James has insisted Wales are here to win matches.
But tournament football is unforgiving and it moves quickly. Wales play three games in eight days. Blink and you'll miss it.
And you'll want to be paying close attention because over the next week or so history will unfold before our eyes.