Latest news with #LeahWilliamson
Daily Mirror
7 hours ago
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Lionesses captain Leah Williamson ready to lead 'new' England this summer
Lionesses captain Leah Williamson believes her new-look side are ready to take on Europe as they look to retain the title they won in historic fashion at Wembley in 2022 Leah Williamson is ready to lead a 'new England' into a huge summer of sport. The Lionesses are preparing to defend their continental title but do so with a squad that looks markedly different from three years ago, with a new crop of fresh faces such as Aggie Beever-Jones and Michelle Agyemang having broken into the squad. Captain Williamson will bring plenty of experience from previous major tournaments, as well as her own taste of continental success with club side Arsenal in May. 'I think it is exciting, we've said before we are a new England,' the 28-year-old said, as part of a new LG OLED TV collaboration ahead of this summer. 'We look different, women's football looks different, the task is different. 'It gets me smiling thinking about it because we have great memories and we want great memories again, and we are willing to work hard for them. It gives you a spike in your desire and all of those things to be better, and hopefully that means it is the start of a good summer.' Williamson was embarking on her first major tournament as captain and her first competition as a starter for England in 2022. Since then, she has fought back from an ACL injury and has had to fight for her place back in the team. All the while, Williamson has been a pivotal part of pushing women's sport to prominence in society, with women's football leading the way. Now, other sports are gaining similar attention with the Women's Rugby World Cup to follow the football in a huge summer of sport, and LG is helping the nation get closer to the action with LG OLED TVs for the smoothest action possible and unbelievable soundbar surround sound to bring the stadium feeling home. And the England skipper shared her experiences of getting the most out of a home tournament with the Red Roses. She added: 'Enjoy every single second and embrace every moment of it. If I could go back and do it all over again, I would. We were lucky we were educated on how big that was and how amazing of an opportunity that was. 'My advice is to just take it all in because it doesn't come around very often, and it is one of the greatest things to be able to do that on home soil, especially the level they are at and the hopes they have of success.' Members of the two England women's teams caught up with LG at St George's Park recently as part of the leading TV manufacturer's ongoing partnership with The FA and the RFU. The LG All In Pledge encourages people to engage and watch women's sport. Together we can grow support through fandom and audience numbers to inspire new players to pick up the sport themselves, as watching changes everything. For more information, go to
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Leah Williamson ready to lead 'new England' into huge summer of sport
Leah Williamson is ready to lead a 'new England' into a huge summer of sport. The Lionesses are preparing to defend their continental title but do so with a squad that looks markedly different from three years ago, with a new crop of fresh faces such as Aggie Beever-Jones and Michelle Agyemang having broken into the squad. Advertisement Captain Williamson will bring plenty of experience from previous major tournaments, as well as her own taste of continental success with club side Arsenal in May. 'I think it is exciting, we've said before we are a new England,' the 28-year-old said, as part of a new LG OLED TV collaboration ahead of this summer. 'We look different, women's football looks different, the task is different. 'It gets me smiling thinking about it because we have great memories and we want great memories again, and we are willing to work hard for them. 'It gives you a spike in your desire and all of those things to be better, and hopefully that means it is the start of a good summer.' Former England goalkeeper and media pundit, Rachel Brown-Finnis, sat down with two of England's most loved sporting teams, the Lionesses and Red Roses to discuss the upcoming summer of sport (imagecomms) Williamson was embarking on her first major tournament as captain and her first competition as a starter for England in 2022. Advertisement Since then, she has fought back from an ACL injury and has had to fight for her place back in the team. All the while, Williamson has been a pivotal part of pushing women's sport to prominence in society, with women's football leading the way. Now, other sports are gaining similar attention with the Women's Rugby World Cup to follow the football in a huge summer of sport, and LG is helping the nation get closer to the action with LG OLED TVs. for the smoothest action possible and unbelievable soundbar surround sound to bring the stadium feeling home. And the England skipper shared her experiences of getting the most out of a home tournament with the Red Roses. Advertisement She added: 'Enjoy every single second and embrace every moment of it. If I could go back and do it all over again, I would. 'We were lucky we were educated on how big that was and how amazing of an opportunity that was. The Red Roses and the Lionesses joined forces to to reflect on some of the nation's most memorable sporting TV moments and the importance of visibility. (imagecomms) 'My advice is to just take it all in because it doesn't come around very often, and it is one of the greatest things to be able to do that on home soil, especially the level they are at and the hopes they have of success.' Members of the two England women's teams caught up with LG at St George's Park recently as part of the leading TV manufacturer's ongoing partnership with The FA and the RFU. The LG All In Pledge encourages people to engage and watch women's sport. Together we can grow support through fandom and audience numbers to inspire new players to pick up the sport themselves, as watching changes everything. For more information, go to
Daily Mirror
12 hours ago
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Meet the Lioness cubs - England's little girls who fought to play football
The Lionesses will head to Switzerland next week as the defending champions at the Women's Euros with their first match against France on Saturday July 5 From little cubs to fierce Lionesses these are the youngsters who fought to become England's pride. Ahead of their journey to Zurich, the team have been at boot camp in St George's Park preparing for the European Championship next week. And as boss Sarina Wiegman put the finishing touches to her side, she surprised them with a gifted shirt from each of their grassroots clubs. The England Women's manager said: "I often say to the squad 'go back to that young girl who first started playing football, think about the happiness those days provided you'. All of the players have had a different journey but their love for the sport will have started at their first club. "For them to wear the shirt of their first ever club and to have many people who were key to their development at training is really special.' But while the players share an unwavering love for the game, it has been no walk-in-the-park getting to where they are now. From bag-packing to raise money to play, getting banned from boys' teams or sacrificing their prom night, each Lioness has a story about a little girl's determination to play football. Before her red jersey bore an Arsenal shield captain Leah Williamson, 28, wore the crest of Scots Youth FC, the junior club of Bletchley, Milton Keynes. Recalling her tough year-long stint there, Williamson, then just six, recalls how her mum made her wear a gum shield in case she was attacked for being the best player on the all-boys side. She said: 'I was the only girl in the team and I used to get abuse from the sidelines every week. 'My mum made me wear a gum shield to protect my teeth because everybody wanted to kick lumps out of me, but it didn't put me off. You couldn't get me out of my football kit. I absolutely loved it. 'That year at Scot Youth made me a stronger person, 100 per cent. 'I knew some people were getting angry on the sidelines that a girl was the best player on the pitch, but for me what was better than matching their aggression was winning the game. 'And that's something I've remembered throughout my career. If you're good enough then you just need to let the football do the talking.' Born with strabismus, a condition which causes misaligned eyes and can affect depth perception, doctors told Hampton she would never have a career in football. But as she embarks on her first international tournament as England's No1 goalie, the Birmingham-born 24-year-old says she has spent her life 'proving people wrong'. She said: "I think I've always gone through life trying to prove people wrong. I was told from a young age that I couldn't play football, that it wouldn't be a profession I could pursue - the doctors told my parents that. "I'm here right now... I think I can say that I've proved people wrong." It's a mission the Chelsea player is determined to keep up throughout the Euros - as many fans had assumed Golden Glove winner Mary Earps would Wiegman's the first choice in goal. Hampton said: 'I'm going to be trying my absolute best to fill the gloves of the keepers (who came) before and the success they've had. I think like everyone here, they've had ups and downs in their careers. She added: 'Did I think, when I was a young girl, I'd be sitting here right now in the position I am? Absolutely not."But am I proud and... I think it's going to be a summer of very exciting football." Beaming at the camera underneath a perfect fringe in a bright green and yellow jersey, little Lauren Hemp was a proud player at Norwich City Girls' Centre of Excellence. But she would soon have to boot up with the boys at North Walsham when the girls' centre was closed down. "I did think 'what am I going to do? Where am I going to go? I'm going to have to go back to playing with the boys' team'," she recalled. But Hemp added: "In the end it shaped me to the player I am." Up north, Lucy Bronze was facing her own struggle to keep playing with the boys at Alnwick Town Juniors. FA rules in the early noughties stated girls could not play for boys' teams beyond the age 12 due to risk of injury. But defiant Bronzey soon found a new team 50 minutes away in Blyth, Northumberland. To this day several Lionesses still credit their parents for driving them miles to games while working multiple jobs. When Georgia Stanway had to leave Furness Rovers boys in her hometown of Barrow-in-Furness, the closest girls' team was two hours down the M6. Stanway, 26 said: "At the age of 12 or 13, girls and boys were no longer allowed to play with each other. I took a year out of football, and participated in every other sport I could. But I just knew that my love was for football so I pestered my parents to take me down to the nearest centre of excellence, which was Blackburn Rovers. It was two hours there, two hours back, three times a week, so it was a massive commitment. "Considering both my parents worked full-time... They were getting out of work as quickly as they could to take me down the M6 motorway and even things like fuel costs, because it's not cheap. "That's kind of how I ended up being who I am now. I'm forever grateful for what they've done. Every single time I got out of the car, whether it was at training or at home, I made sure I said thank you." The Lionesses will play their first match in the Switzerland tournament on Saturday July 5 against France.
Scotsman
a day ago
- Sport
- Scotsman
Almost half of Brits wish there were more women's sport on TV
Almost half of Brits wish there were more women's sport coverage on TV – that's according to new research. Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... This is despite viewership and fandom of women's sports skyrocketing in recent years, thanks to sporting success for England's national teams and increased coverage on TV. This uptick sees many fans frequently tuning in, with over a quarter (27%) actively seeking out women's sport weekly, while one in five (20%) of 18–34-year-olds do so every day, according to recent research by LG. This rings particularly true in the capital, with Londoners the most committed as two in five (40%) seek out female sports content weekly. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The younger generations are the most loyal fans and want to see even more from their favourite sportswomen, with almost three quarters (72%) of 25–34-year-olds sharing they wish women's sport was more widely covered on TV. For those over 45, their kids are taking an educational role in women's sport engagement. Nearly a quarter (22%) claim that their children introduced them to women's sport for the first time. To discuss the upcoming summer of sport, former England goalkeeper and media pundit, Rachel Brown-Finnis, sat down with two of England's most loved sporting teams, the Lionesses and Red Roses. Lioness captain Leah Williamson and teammates, Anna Moorhouse and Jess Carter, were joined by Red Roses, Ellie Kildunne, Sadia Kabeya and Lucy Packer, to reflect on some of the nation's most memorable sporting TV moments and the importance of visibility. Storybeat Sharing her thoughts on the value of visibility, Leah Williamson said, I think it's so important that the boys see us, and they see it as normal that we're on the telly and that we're doing the same thing that they want to do. While goalkeeper, Anna Moorhouse, added, It's just great to have everything more accessible. When I was growing up, you couldn't really watch it on TV, women's sport, it was once in a blue moon, now it's every weekend. Presented by Brown-Finnis, in partnership with LG, the group reflected on the development and support that has shaped women's football and rugby into the globally watched sports they are today. Red Roses Fullback Ellie Kildunne said: 'As a Red Roses team, we're playing and they're inspired by us. It's really cool and its definitely just the start, I think there's so much more we can do to grow.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Fan support from across the country will be inspiring the Red Roses and the Lionesses this summer and Brown-Finnis agrees: 'We will be cheering on the Red Roses this summer, we'll be cheering on the Lionesses – good luck for an amazing summer of sport.' James Thomas, senior product manager for Media Solutions at LG Electronics UK, added: 'It was great to catch up with members of the Lionesses and Red Roses at St George's Park recently, as part of our ongoing partnership with The FA and the RFU. LG's All In Pledge encourages people to engage and watch women's sport, whilst helping the nation get closer to the action with LG OLED TVs. Watching women's sports helps grow the game and inspires new players to pick up the sport themselves, as watching changes everything. 'LG's leading technology provides an unmatched immersive sporting atmosphere for football and rugby fans this summer. This is thanks to our TV's incredible OLED picture quality and Motion Pro technology for the smoothest action possible and unbelievable soundbar surround sound to bring the stadium feeling home.' Red Roses player Sadia Kabeya knows how important watching women's sports is for future players, and said: 'The uptake over the past couple of years has been amazing and I think, I never watched rugby growing up and some of these girls are coming because they've seen it on TV…and that being the reason people are taking up the sport is really cool.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Lioness Jess Carter said: 'It's incredible now that you can watch so much women's sport on TV. Luckily, I've been able to get on it and hopefully other people have been enjoying watching myself and my team play.'
North Wales Live
a day ago
- Sport
- North Wales Live
Almost half of Brits wish there was more women's sport on TV, new research reveals
Almost half of Brits wish there was more women's sport coverage on TV, according to new research. This is despite viewership and fandom of women's sports skyrocketing in recent years, thanks to sporting success for England's national teams and increased coverage on TV. This uptick sees many fans frequently tuning in, with over a quarter (27%) actively seeking out women's sport weekly. While one in five (20%) of 18–34-year-olds do so every day, according to recent research by LG. This rings particularly true in the capital, with Londoners the most committed as two in five (40%) seek out female sports content weekly. The younger generations are the most loyal fans and want to see even more from their favourite sportswomen, with almost three quarters (72%) of 25–34-year-olds sharing they wish women's sport was more widely covered on TV. For those over 45, their kids are taking an educational role in women's sport engagement. Nearly a quarter (22%) claim that their children introduced them to women's sport for the first time. To discuss the upcoming summer of sport, former England goalkeeper and media pundit, Rachel Brown-Finnis, sat down with two of England's most loved sporting teams, the Lionesses and Red Roses. Lioness captain Leah Williamson and teammates, Anna Moorhouse and Jess Carter, were joined by Red Roses, Ellie Kildunne, Sadia Kabeya and Lucy Packer, to reflect on some of the nation's most memorable sporting TV moments and the importance of visibility. Video Loading Sharing her thoughts on the value of visibility, Leah Williamson said: 'I think it's so important that the boys see us, and they see it as normal that we're on the telly and that we're doing the same thing that they want to do.' Goalkeeper, Anna Moorhouse, added: 'It's just great to have everything more accessible. When I was growing up, you couldn't really watch it on TV, women's sport, it was once in a blue moon, now it's every weekend.' Presented by Brown-Finnis, in partnership with LG, the group reflected on the development and support that has shaped women's football and rugby into the globally watched sports they are today. Red Roses full-back Ellie Kildunne added: 'As a Red Roses team, we're playing and they're inspired by us. It's really cool and its definitely just the start, I think there's so much more we can do to grow.' Fan support from across the country will be inspiring the Red Roses and the Lionesses this summer and Brown-Finnis agrees: 'We will be cheering on the Red Roses this summer, we'll be cheering on the Lionesses – good luck for an amazing summer of sport.' James Thomas, senior product manager for Media Solutions at LG Electronics UK, added: 'It was great to catch up with members of the Lionesses and Red Roses at St George's Park recently, as part of our ongoing partnership with The FA and the RFU. LG's All In Pledge encourages people to engage and watch women's sport, whilst helping the nation get closer to the action with LG OLED TVs. 'Watching women's sports helps grow the game and inspires new players to pick up the sport themselves, as watching changes everything.' Red Roses player Sadia Kabeya knows how important watching women's sports is for future players. She said: 'The uptake over the past couple of years has been amazing. I never watched rugby growing up and some of these girls are coming because they've seen it on TV…and that being the reason people are taking up the sport is really cool.' Jess Carter said: 'It's incredible now that you can watch so much women's sport on TV. Luckily, I've been able to get on it and hopefully other people have been enjoying watching myself and my team play' Members of the two England women's teams caught up with LG at St George's Park recently as part of the leading TV manufacturer's ongoing partnership with The FA and the RFU. The LG All In Pledge encourages people to engage and watch women's sport. Together we can grow support through fandom and audience numbers to inspire new players to pick up the sport themselves, as watching changes everything. For more information, go to
